• iizR^^ \N HISTORY 




i.^. B-FviNc; 




^.w wnmn i 






♦ ** -^^ 




v-^^ 



r < 









» * 



77^-^ J> 






.^^-V. - 













l^o^'^^.. V 












• 5^''- 































77*\A 



. .^^\ 







V'^*y \'^''V \^w^'^^^ %w-f^* 









v'^-'/ <^^%^ V^^'y ""-i-*^ 



^ "w^ .•' 












^'- ^>b v^ 


















V 






.V^^ '.^iS/ ^^ 



p. * . , 1 • aO ^ * • ■ » *^ <. O^ • • • • <> 



•- >.> 



v^<' 




Copyright by Underwood & Underwood, N. Y. 

George Washington 



FIRST LESSONS IN 

AMERICAN HISTORY 



REVISED EDITION 



BY <r 
LAWTON b: E\ AXS 

AUTHOR OF *'tHE ESSENTIAL FACTS OF AMERICAN HISTORY* 



BENJ. H. SANBORN & CO. 

CHICAGO NEW YORK BOSTON 






Copyright, 1910, 
By Lawton B. Evans 

Copyright, 1918, 
By Benj. H. Sanborn & Co. 

Copyright, 1922, 
By Benj. H. Sanborn & Co. 



MAR 30 1922 
§)CU661155 



INTRODUCTION 

Tho author of this book has ondoavorod to moot tho domand for 
a simple history of America, suitable for children of ten to twelve 
years of age, many of whom study no other text on the subject. 
In order to present a lx)ok of the most value the nan-ative treats 
of men whose influence has been controlhng in the destiny of the 
nation, but does not make of their lives a series of hero stories. 
The facts of their lives and incidents of their careers are pre- 
sented in sufficient fullness to reveal their personal traits and aid a 
pupil to understand their contributions to the current of events. 
The facts that are presented in the text are those which appear 
most important for a child to know. It is sincerely hoped that the 
style of the narrative is simple enough for pupils of the fourth or 
fifth grade to read with ease and attractive enough for them to 
read with pleasure. 

LAWTON B. EVANS 

Augusta, Georgia, 
February, 1922. 



ui 



TABLE OF CONTENTS 
CHAPTER I 

DlSCOVEKKKS AND EXPLOREHS 

PAGE 

1. Christopher Columbus 1 

2. Isabella Agrees to Help Columbus 5 

3. The First Voyage of Discovery H 

4. The Return to Spain 12 

5. Last Voyage of Columbus 1») 

G. John Cabot — Amcricus Ve.si)uciu3 IH 

7. Balboa— Magellan 20 

8. Ponce de Leon Names and Explores Florida 2:5 

9. The Adventures of Cortcz and Narvaez 26 

10. De Soto Discovers the Mississippi River 30 

11. Coronado Searches for the Seven Cities 35 

12. The French Explore and Settle Canada 37 

CHAPTER II 
The English Colonies 

I'AOE 

1. Sir Walter Raleigh and the Lost Colony 41 

2. The Settlement of Jamestown 45 

3. Pocahontas, the Indian Princess 48 

4. I'rogress of Jamestown 52 

5. Nathaniel Bacon and His Rebellion 56 

6. The Settlement of Plymouth 59 

7. Other Colonies in New England ^ 

8. I'aII&s from the New England Colonies 68 

9. John Eliot, the Ajiostle to the Indians 72 

10. King Philip's War ^l 

11. The Dutch Come to the New World 7S 

12. New Amsterdam Becomes New York S2 

13. T>ord Baltimore and the Colony of Maryland S6 

14. William Penn and the Colony of Pennsylvania 89 

15. Penn's Treaty with the Delawares 92 



Vi CONTENTS 

16. The Carolina Colonies 95 

17. James Oglethorpe and the Colony of Georgia 98 

18. The Spanish Invasion of Georgia 101 

19. The Original Thirteen Colonies 103 

CHAPTER III 
How THE French Lost America 

PAGE 

1. Marquette Explores the Mississippi 109 

2. The French Claim Louisiana 114 

3. The Young George Washington 1 19 

4. Braddock's Defeat 123 

5. The Capture of Quebec 126 

6. Life in the Colonies 129 

7. Customs in the Colonies 132 

8. Discomforts in Colonial Days 135 

9. Servants and Slaves 138 

CHAPTER IV 
Heroes of the Revolution 

PAGE 

1. Patrick Henry 143 

2. Samuel Adams 147 

3. The Minutemen at Lexington 150 

4. General George Washington 154 

5. Attack on Charleston — Declaration of Independence 157 

6. Trials and Triumphs of the Patriots 161 

7. Marion and Sumter 166 

8. The End of the War 170 

9. Benjamin Franklin 174 

10. Daniel Boone Moves into Kentucky 178 

11. George Rogers Clark 182 

12. Robertson and Sevier 185 

CHAPTER V 

The United States 

PAGE 

1. Organizing the Government 190 

2. Eli Whitney Invents the Cotton Gin 194 

3. Thomas Jefferson 198 



CON'1I:NTvS vii 

4. Stephen Dor.itiir Pnnisho-<? tho Pirates 202 

5. Purcha<;inK .ind Exi)loring Louisiana 205 

i\. Robert Fulton Perfects the Steamboat 209 

7. The War of 1S12 2i:i 

8. Andrew Jaclcson and the Battle of New Orleans 21S 

9. Progress and Improvements 22:^ 

10. Henry Clay 228 

1 1. Daniel Webster 232 

12. John C. Calhoun 2:^) 

VS. Morse Invents the P^leotric Telegjaph 239 

14. Te.xa.s Hecome^s a Part of the Unit<'d States 243 

15. We Acquire the Pacific Slope 247 

16. The Progress of the Country 251 

CHAFI^ER VI 
Heroes of the Civil War 

PAGE 

1. Abraham Lincoln 257 

2. Jefferson Davis 203 

3. Stonewall Jackson '267 

4. Robert E. Leo 272 

5. Ulysses S. Grant 277 

6. The End of the War 281 

CHAPTER VII 
A Reunited People 

PAGE 

1. After tiie War. . 2845 

2. Progress of the Country 290 

3. The War with Spain 295 

4. Recent Events 300 

CHAPTER VIII 
The World War 

PAGK 

1. How the War Began 307 

2. Progress of the War 311 

3. The United States Enters the War 316 

4. The End of the War 320 



SUGGESTIONS TO THE TEACHER 

The child's interest in history depends upon the vividness of 
his conception of the men and events of the past. He is con- 
cerned largely with concrete and dramatic incidents and is careless 
of the abstractions of history. The author readily recalls the de- 
light with which as a boy he listened to the stories of "the war" 
told }3y a teacher who had been a soldier, and what a rehef it was 
to escape the dull recital of the textbook. That in the past which 
a child is led to see is history; all else is weariness and vexation. 

The text therefore should be amplified by the teacher with 
abundant illustration, such as stories, descriptions, pictures, and 
objects gathered from all available sources in order to attract the 
attention, stimulate the imagination, and fix the memory. For 
this purpose the teacher should prepare for the teaching of each 
lesson. A number of supplementary books are easily available, 
covering in detail nearly every phase of American history. These 
may be read to or by the pupils or used by the teacher as a basis 
for story work. 

The author suggests that the lesson for the day be read by the 
pupils in class, the meaning of the text explained if necessary, the 
essential points \ye brought out in a discussion, and the pupils 
induced to make a free and full expression of their opinions on all 
subjects pertinent to the lesson. In this way the real spirit and 
essence of the topic may be concentrated around some one definite 
statement that represents the central idea of the lesson. From this 
general discussion and preparation the teacher advances to a study 
of the lesson by definite questions in order to test the knowledge of 

ix 



X SUGGESTIONS TO THE TEACHER 

each pupil. In conjunction with this the pupils should be asked 
to summarize the lesson, to choose the one important fact, tell the 
most interesting fact, etc., in order to vary the kind of questions 
and stimulate both thought and expression. 

A high degree of interest may be developed in the study of his- 
tory by such recreations as impersonations, in which one pupil 
assumes a character and describes himself until the others guess 
his name; by the game of twenty questions, in which one pupil 
thinks of some historical object and the others seek by questions 
to discover the object thought of; and by any other recreation that 
partakes of the nature of a game. 

Children take special interest in the conditions of life among the 
Indians, early settlers, and pioneers, -and in the waj^s of living in 
colonial times. Any dramatization, representation, stories, or pic- 
tures of early conditions, especially those showing the struggles of 
the settlers against the Indians and against the hardships of the 
frontier, are valuable as illustrating the trials endured by the 
founders of the nation. 

The celebration of certain anniversaries gives an opportunity 
to emphasize the character and sei-vices of great men and to con- 
sider anew historical events that are worthy of constant recogni- 
tion. Upon such occasions the use of patriotic poems, songs, and 
recitations, the decoration of the waUs with appropriate pictures, 
and short talks on the subject of the anniversary will make the 
occasion memorable. 

History has a close relation to geography. The teacher should 
ever bear in mind that the child has a clearer conception of an 
occurrence if the location is shown on a map or if a drawing is 
made on the board for the purpose. History also has its relation 
to Hterature, especially to poetry, and the child gets a more de- 
hghtful insight into the romantic side of history by the use of the 
noble poems of the language that bear upon the topics under dis- 
cussion. 



SI (;(;i:s'ri()Ns 'lo 'nii; i kacjiku xi 

If teachers remoinbor that the text is not to be memorized, that 
the questions at the end of the chapters are not to be too mucli 
depended upon, that the pupils are not to be confused with need- 
less details of dates and numbers, and that the successful te^chin^ 
of this text will depend largely upon the interest and care in pn?- 
parinp^ and presenting the lessons, the author feels confident the 
pupils will derive great benefit and inspiration from the study of 
these pages. 



FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN 
HISTORY 

CHAPTER I 
DISCOVERERS AND EXPLORERS 



1. CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS 

Nearly five hundred years ago there Hved in Genoa, 
Italy, a poor man who made his Hving by carding wool for 
the cloth-makers of the town. His eldest son, Early life of 
whom we know as Christopher Colmiibus, was Columbus 
bom in Genoa about the year 1446. The boy loved the sea, 




K BAT ON THE DOCKS AND 
WATCHED THE SHIPS 



FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 



and often sat on the docks and watched the ships come in 
and go out, and heard the sailors tell about their wonderful 
adventures. 

When fourteen years of age the boy became a sailor. He 
sailed on all the seas that were known at the time, visited 
the great ports of the world, and learned all about the care 
and management of ships. His Hfe was full of danger and 
hardship, for there were pirates to be fought and the terrors 
of the sea to be faced. He was a student as well, and 
learned all about the sea, the mariner's compass, and dis- 
tant countries which travelers could reach only by going 
overland. 

Among these countries were India and China, far to the 
east. Travelers had said that in them were palaces paved 
„ , , with gold, and gardens laden with spices and 

Merchants & ^ o i- 

desire a sea- perfumes. To trade with merchants coming 
way to India fj.Qj^ those lands, European merchants had to 
travel in caravans weary miles over deserts where they were 
tortured by thirst, and across mountains infested with 
robbers. The journey was long, expensive, and dangerous. 
Therefore, the merchants greatly desired a seaway to India 
and China. 




The terror of the sea 



DISCO VERKI{.S AM) KXPLoliKRs 



The knowTi world at that time consisted of Europe and 
parts of Asia and Africa. All the great country in which we 
live was quite unkno\vn. There were no great steamships 
then as there are now. The sailing vessels were small, and 
sailors were afraid to go far from land. They had heard 
terrible tales of sea serpents that lived in the ocean, and 
ships that were lost in the sea of darkness. 

Most people at that time thought the world was flat. A 
few wise men, however, believed it was round. Columbus 
had come to that belief, and said that the way to prove it 
was to sail around the world. Besides settling tliis great 
question, he might gain riches and 
honor for himself and for the mer- 
chants if he could discover a short 
way to India and the East. 

Eveiybody made sport of this ^mc>%^«i^^K "^%t 
idea. It seemed an absurd notion 
that the world could be round, and 

that a ship could sail douTi the side ''?'?^^|i8|^^?5^W^^S^^^^\^^^ 
of the sea. What was to keep the 

ocean from spilling into space, and Christopher C^olumbus 

the ship itself from faUing off the eiirth, and how could 
people live with their heads downward, and besides, how 
could a ship ever sail up again? Then, too, there were the 
terrible monstei's of the deep, and boiling waves and fierce 
storms awaiting any one who sailed far into those dreaded 
seas. If the merchants wanted a seaway to India let them 
find one by sailing around the south of Africa, but to talk 
about sailing around the world was foolish. 




4 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

Columbus insisted that the world was round, and that he 
could reach the East by saihng west, if only he could get 
Columbus ships and sailors. He was declared a dreamer, 
made sport But firm in his belief he went from place to 
°^ place, spending all his money and using all 

his powers of persuasion in tryiiig to induce kings and wise 
men to help him make a voyage around the world. Nobody 
would listen to him long. At length he became very poor, 
and even the children made fun of him, saying: ''There 
goes the crazy stranger with the threadbare coat." 



I)IS( (»\ KKKHS AM) J:XI'L()in:KS .) 

2. ISABELLA AGREES TO HELP COLUMBUS 

In his wanderings Columbus went to King John II of 
Portugal, and explained to him his plans and purposes. 11ip 
king listened to him with interest and was j^^g John 
much unpressed by liis arguments. He looked of Portugal 
at the maps and charts of Columbus, and called a council of 
his wise men to consider what Columbus had said. But 
the wise men declared the ])lan a foolish one ;m<l ndx i>fMl tlu^ 
king not to help Columbus. 

One of them, however, more crafty than the other>, 
advised the king to secretly send a ship westward to see if 
Columbus was right, and if the world really was round. 
The king consented to this and the ship was dispatched. 
But the sailors went only a short distance and returning 
to the king reported that there was no land to be found. 
Colmiibus heard of this treachery, and indignantly left 
Portugal. 

At last Coluinbus came to the court of Spain and present^i 
hmiself to Ferdinand and Isabella, the king and queen of 
that country. They examined his maps and charts and 
listened to his arguments that the world was round. He 
asked them for ships and men, that he might undertake a 
voyage around the world, and thereby reach India by sailing 
west. 

Ferdinand was opposed to the project. He had spent 
nmch money in war, and did not care to waste any more in 
so fooUsh an enterprise as that proposed by Ferdinand 
Columbus. Besides, Columbus asked for too opposes 
great a share of the profits of the voyage — if 



6 



FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 



indeed there were to be any. Columbus, disappointed 
again, sadly departed from the court. 

Taking his little son he set out on foot, determined to 
leave Spain and seek his fortune elsewhere. As he journeyed 
he came to a monastery, where he asked the monks for 
bread and water for his boy. Columbus told one of the 
monks who he was, and discussed with him his great plans 
for sailing around the world. The monk believed it could 
be done, and called in several friends to hsten to Columbus. 




The queen had been much interested 

Messengers were sent by the monk to the queen begging 
her not to let so great an opportunity pass. If Columbus 
j^^ should be right, Spain would receive great 

sent to the honors from the venture, and the cost of the 
queen voyage would be amply repaid. Isabella agreed 



nis('()vi:KKHs AM) i:xpl()Hf:hs 7 

to another interview iuid sent Columbus money to purchase 
clothes with which to appear at court. 

A^Tien Columbus came again before the king and queen, 
they avsked him what lie demanded. He told them he 
wished to be made admiral of the ocean and viceroy of any 
strange lands he might discover, and receive a large share 
of the profits to be made by trade and conquest. ''You ask 
too much," said the king. ''I will take no less," repUeil 
Colmnbus, and again left the court and mounting his mule 
rode out of the city. 

The queen, howe\'er, had been nuich interested. After 
Columbus had left the court and was preparing to go to 
France, she decided there was some reason in Isabella 
his plans, and great glory for Spain if he sue- is convinced 
ceeded. She said to Ferdinand: ''I will undertake this 
thing, and will pledge my jewels, if necessaiy, to raise the 
money." A courier was sent in haste to Columbus. He 
was overtaken about six miles from the city. He quickly 
returned and made an agreement with the sovereigns. 

Columbus was now fifty-six years of age. He was tall^ 
of fair complexion and fine figure. His eyes w^ere blue and 
his hair was turning gray. WTien it was kno\vn that the 
good queen had agreed to help liim, everybody stopped 
making sport of him, and began to talk of the strange voyage 
he was about to make. 



8 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

3. THE FIRST VOYAGE OF DISCOVERY 

It was hard to get seamen for the voyage. They were 
afraid of the unknown seas. The Spanish government 
forced sailors to embark, and even released some criminals 
from prison and made them enlist for the voyage. 

Early one morning in midsummer three vessels with 

ninety persons on board sailed out of the harbor of Palos, 

^ , ^ Spain. The vessels were the Santa Maria, the 

Columbus ^ 

sails, August Pinta, and the Nina. Columbus was on the Santa 
3, 1492 Maria, the largest of the three. As they set 

sail the people on the docks wept and wailed, thinking they 
should never see their friends and relatives again. The little 




The ships of Columbus 

fleet was supposed to be starting on its way to reach the rich 
countries of India and China by sailing westward across 
the Atlantic Ocean. Even Columbus himself did not know 
how far it was around the world, and supposed India and 
China to be only a few thousand miles away. 



DISCOVKKKKS AM) KXPLOKKHS 



Hardly had the Httle fleet started when the rudder of the 
P???/a broke, which made it necessary for the ship to steer 
for the Canary Islands. A few weeks were spent in repairs 
and tlie voyage was continued. The weather was beautiful. 
No storms arose to distress or separate the little fleet. 
Day after day they sailed westward, around them the 
boundless water, o\'erhead the blue sky, and nowhere any 
sign of the dreadful monsters they had feared so nmch. 

As they sailed onward the men grew more and more 
afraid. They did not know what was ahead of them. They 
recalled the stories of ships swallowed up in the ^, .. 
sea, of dreadful storms, and of great sea ser- become 
pents. The wind blew steadily from behind, alarmed 
and the men had fears of never getting back home. 

The needle of the compass no longer pointed exactly to 
the North Star, but a Httle to the northwest. The fears 



COLUMBUS 

FIRST VOVACE 
1402-3 







rA ciric 

OCMJ M 




The first voya(jk ok ( 'olumbus 
of the sailors increased daily, and they were loud in their 
demands to turn back. 

Colmnbus, however, held on his course. At length signs 
of land appeared. Birds flew over the ship and seaweed 



10 



FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 




The discovery of land 



floated by ; a branch with berries 
on it was seen in the water, and 
a carved stick was picked up. 
Everybody was on the lookout. 
A reward had been offered to 
the first one seeing land. One 
night Columbus saw a fight in 
the distance as if carried in a 
boat or by some one 
on shore. A fittle after 
midnight a shout was 
heard from the Pinta of 
"Land! land !'^ A gun 
was fired. When day 
dawned, land, green and beau- 
tiful, was before the eyes of 
the weary sailors. Columbus 
received the reward, as he 
was the first who saw the light 
on the shore. 



I;IS('()\ 1:HKKS AM) KXPLOiiKHS 11 

A little after daybreiik, Columbus, dressed in a rich soar- 
let cloak and bearing the royal banner of Spain, went in .1 
small boat to the shore. He bowed down and , . ^. 

Land discov- 

kissed the gi'ound and wept tears of joy. He ered, October 
drew his sword, unfurled the flag, and took ^^' ^^^^ 
possession of the land in the name of his sovereign>s. His 
timid sailors crowded around him, kissed his hands, and 
begged forgiveness for their lack of confidence* in their leader. 
Columbus had landed on a small island in the group of 
the Bahamas. He named it San Salvador. 



12 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

4. THE RETURN TO SPAIN 

When Columbus landed he saw a number of strange, 

half-naked, red-skinned people coming down to the shore. 

They stared in wonder at him and his men, and 

The Indians . i rm i i 

then in terror ned to the woods, ihey had 
never seen sailing vessels or white men before. They 
thought the ships were great white birds, and that the 
strange men had come from the skies. Columbus, suppos- 
ing that he had reached some part of India, named the 
natives Indians, and they are so called to the present day. 

Afterwards it became known that the Indians were in all 
parts of the new world, living in small villages, widely scat- 
The life of tered, their houses, called wigwams, being made 
the Indians generally of skins of animals, or bark of trees. 
Their chief occupation was hunting and fishing, and culti- 
vating small patches of corn and vegetables. They had no 
schools or churches or towns such as we have. They lived 
a wandering life, finding their food in the forest or in the 
stream, and caring for little else than their own diversion 
and comfort. 

The Indians were of a reddish-brown or copper color. 
The men generally were tall, straight, and muscular, accus- 
Their tomed to hardship and capable of great endur- 

appearance ance. Their eyes were small and black; their 
cheek bones high; their hair was coarse, black, and straight. 
The men cut their hair short leaving a tuft on the top of their 
head known as the ''scalp lock.'' This was for the enemy 
to seize if he could, when he attempted to pull off the scalp. 



Disc()\ i:uKi{s AND i:xi»L()Ki:iis 13 

Tlio Indians wore l)iit little clothing especially in wann 
weather. In winter they wore soft deerskin, often painted 
in gaudy colors or braided with quills. To protect their 
feet on long marches they wore moccasins, made of soft 
but strong skins. Those moccasins were said to he the 
most comfortable covering for the feet ever made. 

The men were not inclined to do hard work. Their 
part was to hunt and fish, make arrowheads and spear 
points, and engage in warfare. The women made the deer- 
skin clothes, planted the corn and tobacco, put up and took 
down the tents, made the fires and cooked the food. The 
babies were called papooses and were carried in packs on the 
backs of their mothers. - 

The Indians had no idea of civilized life. They were 
generally bloodthirsty and cruel in war, often treacherous 
in the observance of their treaties, and were Habits and 
always a dangerous and uncertain neighbor to customs of 
the wliite men who came ovvv to settle among the Indians 
them. They loved warfare more than they loved anything 
else, and nothing delighted them more than to put on their 
war paint, dance the war dance, and steal silently through 
the deep woods in search of the wigwams of the enemy or 
the cabins of the white settlers. In some cases, however, 
there were friendly Indians who gave the white settlers no 
trouble, and who helped them in the establishment of their 
little colonies. 

So much for the red-skinned natives whom the Spaniards 
saw when thev landed on the shon?s of the new world. 



14 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

Columbus remained a few days on the island he had 
discovered and then sailed away, still seeking the great 
cities of India and China. He visited the islands of Cuba 
and Haiti, but nowhere found any sign of the treasure 
cities. 

After nearly three months Columbus sailed back to 
Spain. He took ten Indians with him, as well as many 
Return to curious things he had found on his voyage. 
Spain Great was the rejoicing of the people when it 

was known that Columbus had returned. The stores were 
closed, the bells in the churches were rung, and the people 
who before had wept for fear now cried for joy. 

The king and queen sent for him to give them an account 
of his adventures. He was no longer the madman, but was 
now a hero. A great procession was formed. In front were 
the Indians; then came persons bearing the parrots, plants, 
and curiosities Columbus had brought home with him. 
Columbus himself rode a fine horse and was surrounded by 
the nobles of Spain. 

The king and queen sat under a great canopy. When 
Coliunbus approached, they rose and greeted him with 
Reception at every mark of regard and admiration. He 
court told them the long story of his discoveries, 

after which the royal pair fell on their knees and thanked 
God for the safe return of the great voyager, and for the 
new lands which he had discovered. 

There was no trouble in getting sailors and adventurers 
for a second voyage. In a few months seventeen vessels 
had been made ready. Horses, seed, farm tools, and other 



DISCOVERERS AM) KWlA )R1':RS 15 

necessities for a colony were collected. Al)()ut fifteen hundred 
persons wont on tliis xoyage. Some of them lioped to find 
gold and pearls in the new land; others were other voyages 
bent on adventure; only a few were expecting of Columbus 
hardsliij) and work. On this second voyage Columbus 
founded a colony on the island of Haiti. He spent three 
years wandering about the islands of the West Indies. He 
then returned to Spain. Two years passed by, and he 
made a third voyage, going as far soutli as tlie island of 
I'rinidad and the mainland of South America. 

A story is told that one day Columbus was at dinner with 
a number of distinguished people, and they all agreed that 
it was a wonderful thing for him to think about saiHng across 
the ocean. Columbus said nothing, but took up an egg and 
asked them to stand it on end. E\'erybody tried, but 
nobody succeeded. When it came back to Columbus he 
cracked the shell and stood the egg up without diflficulty. 
''Oh. anybody could do that, if lie only thouglit of it!" 
the company exclaimed. "Yes, but I thought of it," siiid 
Columbus. 



16 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

5. LAST VOYAGE OF COLUMBUS 

The fortunes of Columbus now began to change. The 
colonists on the island of Haiti fell ill with malaria; they 
could find no gold and food was scarce. They complained 
bitterly of their condition, and began to abuse Columbus 
as the cause of all their misfortunes. As a fact, they had 
only themselves to blame. Instead of working as they 
should, they spent their time in hunting for treasure and 
mistreating the Indians. The simple-minded savages often 
begged the Spaniards to return to heaven on their great 
white birds. 

The king and queen of Spain sent an officer to inquire 
into the way Columbus had treated the colonists. This 
Columbus officer unjustly put Columbus in chains and 
in chains sent him back to Spain. Columbus was in the 

greatest distress at this treatment. He said: 'T shall wear 
these chains until the king and queen order them to be 
taken off, and I will keep them as relics and memorials of 
my service. '^ Afterwards he said to his son: ^^Let the 
chains be buried with me." When he arrived in Spain the 
people were indignant at the way in which he had been 
treated. The queen sent for him, ordered his chains re- 
moved, and wept when he told her the story of his misfor- 
tunes. 

After a year or more had passed Columbus made a fourth 
voyage to the new world. When his vessels reached Haiti 
Fourth and ^ terrific storm arose that came near destroying 
last voyage his little fleet. He did not land, but sailed 
westward, reaching the coast of Central America some- 



i)is(()\ i;ki:ks and i:xri.()Ki;i{s 17 

where on the Isthmus of J^mama. The rain and the heat 
niade his suffeiings very great. The food became so bad 
tliat the men ate their bread in the dark so that they could 
not see its concht ion. 

After a year of wandering and disappointment, Columbus 
decided to go back to Spain. He still believed that he had 
reached the coast of India, and could not understand w hy 
he did not find the rich cities of which the merchants had 
told him. 

AMhmi lie reached Spain, C^'i^'^^'^^ Isabella was on her dcath- 
hvd. When she died Columbus lost his best friend. Old, 
sick, and poor, he had to live on charity. Often he was 
without money to buy bread or pay for a place to sleep. 
At last, when about seventy years of age he died, and was 
buried in the town of Valladohd, Spain. He never knew 
that he had discovered a new world. 



18 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

6. JOHN CABOT— AMERICUS VESPUCIUS 

There was great excitement in Europe over the voyages 
of Columbus, and the short way he was supposed to have 
found to China and Japan. The king of England gave 
permission to John Cabot, an Italian sailor, who with his 
three sons was living in England at that time, to sail west- 
ward and discover whatever he could. This was before 
Columbus had made his fourth voyage. 

Cabot sailed across the ocean and landed on the coast of 

North America, somewhere near Newfoundland or J^abrador. 

When he landed he took possession of the 
Voyages of • p t^ i i 

John Cabot, Country in the name of the kmg of England. 

1497-1498 When he went back to England and told that he 

had found land to the west, everybody paid him and his sons 

great honor, and crowds followed them whenever they 

appeared on the streets. 

The next year John Cabot made another voyage to the 
coast of North America and wandered as far south as Cape 
Hatteras, and probably farther. Again Cabot told wonder- 
ful stories of icebergs and polar bears that he had seen on 
the northern coasts, and of the green forests and beautiful 
flowers and fruits of the southern shores. He had found 
no gold and had not discovered a way to India. He had 
landed on the mainland of North America, however. These 
voyages gave John Cabot the right to be called the discov- 
erer of the mainland of North America, and gave England 
the right to claim the new world as one of her possessions. 

Among those who made voyages to the new world was 
Americus Vespucius, an Itahan by birth, but living in 



DISCOVERERS AND EXPIXJRERS 19 

Spain at the time. On one of his voyages he explored the 
coast of Brazil. When he returned to Europe he wrote an 
account of the ''New World/' as he called it. ^ 

^ Amencus 

His account created a great sensation. It was Vespudus, 
translated into several languages, and Anieri- i5oi-i504 
cus was as much talked about as ever Columbus had been. 
The belief now gained ground that the newly discovered 
shores were not those of Asia at all, but in fact belonged to a 
new continent which, up to this time, had been unknown 
to the people of the world. 

A German professor soon after published a book on 
geography. He divided the world into four parts, Europe, 
Asia, Africa, and the part that Americus had written about. 
He said: *'I see no reason why this fourth part should not 
take its name from its discoverer and be called America." 
From this suggestion all the new world came to be called 
America. 



20 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

7. BALBOA— MAGELLAN 

Fifteen or twenty years had passed since Columbus had 
discovered America. Vessels were constantly plying across 
the ocean, bringing settlers and adventurers to the islands 
of the West Indies. Settlements were made on the Isthmus 
of Darien, but the great heart of the continent was unknown 
and untouched. 




Balboa discovers the Pacific Ocean and takes possession in the name 

OF THE king of SpAIN 

The Spaniards were especially eager for the treasures 
which the new world was supposed to contain. Every 
ship brought adventurers who hoped to better their for- 
tunes by finding gold and silver in the mountains and 
streams, or else to find diversion in fighting the savages. 



I)1S( ()\ KKKKS AM) KXPI^i )HKR8 21 

Among these adventurers was Balboa. He was at one 
time a wealthy landowner in Haiti. Becoming bankrupt, 
he tried to escape his creditors by concealing Balboa at 
himself in a cask in the hold of an outgoing Darien 
vessel. When discovered, the captain threatened to land 
him on a desert island, but Balboa begged to be allowed to 
remain on board. The vessel was wrecked on the coast of 
the Isthmus of Darien. After a few years Balboa had 
become the leader of the colony on the isthnms. 

Hearing from the Indians that gold could be found beyond 
the mountains, he led a party of men across the isthmus. 
To his surprise and delight there appeared the j^. , 

waters of a great sea. Balboa waded into the Pacific Ocean, 
surf, displayed his flag, and took possession of ^^^^ 
the water, and all lands it touched, in the name of the king 
of Spain. In this way did Balboa discover the waters of the 
Pacific Ocean. He did not know it was an ocean, but 
thought it was a great sea, and so he called it ''The South 
Sea." 

Another bold navigator named Alagellan j)i-oposed to siul 
around South America and around the world. He sailed 
from Spain with five ships bearing nearly three Magellan, 
hundred men. He passed through the straits I5i9-i522 
bearing his name, and went as far as the Philippine Islands. 
He named the ocean on which he siiiled the Pacific, which 
means ''peaceful." 

The voyage across the ocean was most distressing. The 
water became so foul the sailors could not drink it, the food 
gave out, and the sun was so hot that it blistered the decks. 



22 



FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 




The voyage of Magellan around the world 



Many of the sailors died, but Magellan bravely held on his 
course. 

At the Philippine Islands Magellan was killed in a fight 
with the natives. His few remaining sailors continued their 
voyage. Only one of his vessels and eighteen of his crew 
succeeded in completing the first voyage around the world. 



DISC'OVEREl{.S AND P:XPL()RERS 23 

8. PONCE DE LEON NAMES AND EXPLORES FLORIDA 

Among those who were with Columbus on his second 
voyage was Ponce de Leon, a brave Spanish soldier, thirty- 
two years of age. Afterwards he lived for twenty years in 
the West Indies, and was so fine a soldier that he was made 
governor of Porto Rico. He was now growing old and he 
dreaded age and white liairs. 

He spoke of liis coming age to an Indian. The savage 
replied: "Across the w^aters is a beautiful island full of 
flowers, fruit, and game. Somewhere in that land is a 
fountain of magic water. If one bathes in it he will never 
lose his strength, his hair will never grow white, and his 
limbs will never grow weary." 

DeLeon was charmed with the story of the wily savage, 
w^ho was merely trying to get rid of him and his men. He 
obtained pennission from the king of Spain 
to explore and settle this island. He sailed discovered 
with three vessels full of liardy adventurers, ^^ named, 
bent on finding the wonderful fountain and 
anything else the island might contain. In a few days they 
reached a beautiful verdant coast. It was Easter Sunday, 
or Pascua Florida, when land was first seen. In honor of 
the day DeLeon named the countiy Florida. 

Then began the search for the wonderful fountain. The 
soldiers plunged deep into the forests; on all sides were 
beautiful flowere, abundant fruit, and plenty . 

of game. The Indians fled at the approach of the fountain 
the strange white faces. De Leon and his follow- °^ ^^"^ 
ers drank at evers- spring, and bathed in ever>' stream, 



24 



FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 



brook, river, and creek. They wandered up and down the 
coast trying the waters in all places. 

In spite of all his foolish efforts De Leon's hair remained 
as white, his skin as wrinkled, and his limbs as weary as ever. 
He had tried hundreds of places in vain. At last his dis- 
contented followers exclaimed, ^ 'There is no such fountain 
here; we must return to Porto Rico." 




Ponce de Leon searches for the fountain of youth 



Accordingly De Leon set sail from the land he had ex- 
plored, just as white-haired and old and foolish as when he 
came. He went to Spain, however and reported to the king 
the wonders of this new land, which he had named Florida. 



DISC'OVKREHS AND KXPLORERS 25 

The king granted him ponnission to fonnd a colony in this 
now country. 

Ki^;ht years passed by and Ponce de Leon again set out 
for Florida. lie had given up liis search for the fountain of 
youth, and was now resohed on establishing a other expior- 
colony, and a powerful government of which ations of 
he should be the head. He took with him all ^^ ^^°" 
the materials for building a town, provisions to last for many 
months, and seed for planting the fields and gardens. He 
still beheved he had discovered an island, and did not know 
he had explored a part of the mainland of North America. 

For nearly a year De Leon and his men wandered up and 
down the coast, seeking for a place to build a town, but too 
adventurous and restless ever to f(jund one. 

Tlie Lidians, however, remembered certain cruelties of 
other Spaniards who had visited their shores, and were no 
longer friendly to De Leon and his men. They Death of 
had long since overcome their fear of them and ^^ ^eon 
at lengt'h resolved to attack them and drive them away. 
One day a large body of savages attacked the camp of the 
Spaniards, and in the fight that followed a poisoned arrow 
wounded the valiant old De Leon. 

His followers put him on board a ship and carried him to 
Cuba where he died. He had not found a fountain of 
youth, for there is no such fountain anywhere, but he had 
found and explored the beautiful land which to this day is 
called Florida. 



9. THE ADVENTURES OF CORTEZ AND NARVAEZ 



About the time that 
De Leon was trying to 
found a colony in Florida 
and Magellan was on his 
voyage around the world, 
a brave Spanish soldier 
named Cortez had under- 
taken to conquer Mexico. 
Mexico was inhabited 
by the Aztec Indians 
who were much farther 
advanced in civihzation 
than other Indian tribes of America. 
They had large cities, storehouses, beau- 
tiful roads, and many of the comforts of 
civihzed hfe. 

Cortez had heard wonderful stories 
of the wealth of the king of Mexico. 
It was said that even the common 
people ate and drank from vessels of 
gold, and that the king's palace was 
covered with gold, and his attendants 
wore clothes embroidered with the pre- 
cious metal. All these stories fired the 
spirits of the Spaniards who loved gold 
more than they desired to found colo- 
nies. 

Cortez was placed at the head of an 
expedition to conquer Mexico. When 
Mexico EXCITES Spanish ]yj;Qj^^g2mna, the king of Mexico, heard 
that Cortez had landed at Vera Cruz 




ADVENTURERS 



DISCOVERERS AND EXPIX)RERS 27 

he sent runners bearing presents of gold, jewels, and rich 
cloths, and begging him to spare the country from invasion. 
But the gifts inflamed the greed of the Span- ^^^^^ 
iards more than ever, and forthwith they invades 
marched over the smooth roads and came to Mexico, 
the city of Mexico, where Montezuma awaited 
them with many misgivings and fear. 

Cortez rode into the city attended by his captains and 
men. Montezuma met him seated in a chair under a canopy 
of rare and beautiful feathers. He gave Cortez quantities 
of food and rich gifts for his men, and offered him the 
freedom of the city. The Spaniards numbered only two 
hundred, but they quite terrorized the Indians by their guns 
and armor, and went everywhere unmolested by the sa\- 
ages, who numbered thousands. 

For several weeks Cortez and his men stayed in Mexico, 
gathering nmch plunder of gold and jewels, and treating the 
natives with very little consideration. One day ^^e Spaniards 
a Spanish captain seeing a human sacrifice in in the city of 
one of the temples grew so indignant that he 
ordered his men to fire at the Indians, thereby killing several 
priests. The Mexicans had already grown tired of then- 
guests and the death of their priests was enough to rouse the 
natives to attack the Spaniards. 

Cortez called his men together and hastily they prepared 
to leave. But as they departed the :\Iexicans began a 
merciless attack and before the Spaniards could get safely 
away many were killed in the fierce and savage onslaught 
of the natives who were already outraged at the greed and 
plunder and arrogance of their unwelcome visitors. 



28 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

A year later Cortez returned with a large army gathered in 
Spain and Cuba. Montezuma was dead and Guatemazin 
The conquest ^as now king of Mexico. The siege of the city 
of Mexico lasted three months, in which the cruel invaders 
slew many thousands of the Indians. At last the proud city 
gave way to its besiegers and the conquest of Mexico was 
complete. Mexico passed into the hands of its Spanish 
conquerors. 

The story of the wealth of Mexico created great excitement 
in Spain. When the Spanish adventurers heard of the fine 
houses, fine roads, beautiful temples, and treasure houses 
full of gold that the Mexican Indians had, they thought 
there must be other countries as beautiful and other cities 
as rich as those Cortez had conquered. Narvaez was among 
those who resolved to try their fortune in search of gold and 
conquest. 

The king of Spain gave him permission to explore and 
to colonize a large territory. With six hundred men and a 
j^ large supply of provisions he set sail from Spain, 

explores The party came to the coast of Florida and be- 

Fionda, 1528 ^^^^ their march inland. They wandered on 
and- on, seeking for gold and the rich cities. They found 
only the miserable huts of Indians. 

Food became scarce and starvation stared them in the 
face. A messenger was sent to the coast to find their 
ships, but he came back to report that the ships were 
nowhere to be seen. The party turned south and at last 
came back to the coast of Florida. Here they slew their 
horses and devoured them. Boats they must have, and so 



niSC'OVKHKKS AND KXPLDRKRS 29 

they cut down trees from tlie forest and made ship timbers 
fashioned with tools made from the iron of their stirrups, 
swords, and guns. They turned their nmskets 
into nails. They used the manes and tails of " enngs 
the dead horses to make ropes and cordage. They used 
their own clothes for sails. 

At last they embarked in their weak and leaky boats, and 
ior a month were beaten about in the Gulf of ^Mexico. They 
drifted past the mouth of the Mississippi, were carried out 
to sea, and the boat in which Narvaez was, filled with 
water and went to the bottom with more than fifty men. 

The other boats drifted until some of them reached 
the coast of Texas. Here the half-starved Spaniards 
were set upon by the Indians and the greater number were 
killed. A few escaped and later were made slaves by 
other tribes of Indians. For a number of years they re- 
mained with their Indian masters, all dying, however, 
except three Spaniards and one negro. 

At length these four made their escape and found their 
way to a small Spanish village in ]\Iexico. The inhabitants 
were astonished to see their gaunt faces and Cabeza de 
strangely clad forms. One of the four was Vaca 
named Cabeza de Vaca. He had been the treasurer of the 
expedition. He told tlie Spaniards of the strange adven- 
tures which had befallen him and his companions in their 
long wanderings through the forests of the new world. 



30 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 



10. DE SOTO DISCOVERS THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER 

Hernando de Soto was a rich and influential Spaniard, 
who was eager for wealth and for conquest in the new world. 
It was always so with the Spaniards in those early days. 

A fleet was prepared at great expense which landed the 
Spaniards on the west coast of Florida near the site of the 
present city of Tampa. Six hundred men 
in Florida, formed the party. There were over two 
1539 hundred horses and a drove of three hundred 

hogs. There were bloodhounds to hunt down the Indians 
and chains to bind the captives. The men were provided 
with firearms, cannon, and steel armor. It was as cruel 
a band of warriors bent on gold and plunder as ever wandered 
through the forests of the new world. 

Hardly had the party started on its march when there 
appeared out of the woods a white man named Juan Ortez, 
who said he had been a captive among the Indians for ten 
years, and knew the trails through the forests and the 
language of the people. He was gladly welcomed to the 
party and became their guide and interpreter. 

De Soto marched northward, terrifying the Indians, rob- 
bing the villages of food, and searching for treasure. Months 
Wanderings went by and there was no gold. All they found 
of De Soto was tangled forests and small villages where 
unfriendly tribes of savages looked with distrust and fear 
upon the invaders. Fear alone kept the Indians at peace, 
and even their few kind deeds were repaid with cruel treat- 
ment. 



DISCOVKRERS AND I:XPI/)HI:RS 



31 



During one of Iiis fights with the natives, De Soto was 
astonished to find a white man among; t lie siiviiges, who called 
out to him in the Spanish lanp;uage. After the battle the 
man told him he was one of the followers of Narvaez and 
that he had been captured by the Indians and condemned 
to be burned alive. Just before the torch was applied the 
daughter of the chief begged that he be spared and given 
to her for a white slave. De Soto rescued him from the 
Indians and attached him to his part}-. 




I)k Soto MAiicniM; Tinior(;H thk wildkknkss 

De Soto moved northward through the swamps and forests 
of Florida and Georgia. As was to be expected, their food 
gave out. The men complained and wanted to turn back, 
and the Indians were always unfriendly. They lured the 



32 



FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 



Spaniards onward, however, telling them of rich cities and 
treasures to be found farther on. 

They came at last to the banks of the Savannah River. 
Here they were met by a beautiful Indian princess. She 
D s t nd ^^^^ <^ut to meet the Spaniards with every 
the Indian expression of good will and friendship. She 
princess ^^^^g carried on a litter, borne by four of her 

subjects, from which she alighted and made signs of peace 
and friendship to the Spanish leader. Taking a string of 
pearls from around her own neck she placed it around the 

neck of De Soto and bade 
him follow her into the vil- 
lage to partake of the rude 
hospitality of her subjects. 
De Soto and his men 
rested for several days in 
the village of the Indian 
princess. But on leaving he 
repaid her kindness in a 
cruel way. He plundered 
the village of all its valuables and taking captive the princess 
compelled her to accompany him on the march. For several 
weeks they plodded along following the Savannah River 
northward, the princess on foot or being carried on a litter 
and attended by her maids. One day she suddenly sprang 
from her couch, ran swiftly through the forest, and disap- 
peared with her maids. The Spaniards never heard of her 
again. 

The party now marched westward and then southward 




Route jl ''^ 

•Mav1Ila(5 / 



Tampa Bay^ 

Gulf of Mexico 




The march of De Soto 



DISCOVEREII.S AND 1 vX VIA )K KRS 33 

until they came to the town of Mavilla, where Mobile, 
Alabama, now stands. The chief met De Soto with a great 
show of friendship, and begged him to enter Battle of 
liis village. No sooner, however, were the Maviiia 
Spaniards inside than a shower of arrows fell upon them with 
deadly efTect. De Soto was enraged at this treatment and at 
once assaulted the Indians in a terrible battle which lasted 
nine hours. The Indian town was burned and hundreds of 
the savages were killed, but the Spaniards lost many men 
and nearly all their baggage. 

A year and more had passed and the soldiers were much 
discouraged. Their uniforms had worn out and had been 
replaced with skins and mats. Their hair was long and 
matted, their figures gaunt and bent. Their hogs had long 
since been eaten and their horses were nearly dead with 
fatigue and lack of food. There was not nmch ammunition 
left for their guns and no medicine for the sick. 

Onward they trudged across the present states of Alabama 
and Mississippi. They fought many battles with the sav- 
ages, losing men and baggage as they went on. 
Two years passed by, when one day the little reaches the 
band marched out of the thick undergrowth Mississippi, 
and stood on the banks of a great river. It was 
the Mississippi, the Father of Waters, gazed upon by the 
eyes of white men for the first time. De Soto discovered the 
Mississippi about where the city of Memphis now is. 

Crossing the stream the adventurers wandered for a year 
or more in the tangled forests of the present states of Arkan- 
sas and Missouri. Returning to the Mississippi, De Soto, 



34 



FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 



discouraged and broken-hearted, was taken ill with fever. 
When he died his followers dropped his body, weighted 
D th d with stones, into the current of the great river 
burial of he had discovered. The remainder of his fol- 

De Soto lowers finally made their way to a Spanish 

colony in Mexico, and told the story of their adventures 
and of the sad fate of De Soto. 




De Soto discovers the Mississippi Riveb 



discovp:rkrs and explorers 35 

11. CORONADO SEARCHES FOR THE SEVEN CITIES 

The Spaniards were iirnily established in Mexico. They 
still believed that somewhere in the heart of the continent 
there were great quantities of gold and silver. An Indian 
slave had told wonderful stories of seven cities of Cibola, 
lying somewhere to the north, where there was plenty of 
gold. But the slave had died, and there was no one to le^id 
the way to those cities. 

About the time that De Soto was making his explora- 
tions, an army of three hundred Spaniards and over twice 
as many Indian followers began a march from 
Mexico in search of the treasure cities. The marches 
leader of the explorers was Francisco Coronado. from Mexico, 
The party crossed the deserts of Arizona, and 
after Tuany days' wandering came to the first Indian 
city. Instead of beautiful palaces lined with gold, they 
found rude huts filled with dirt. Instead of a rich and 
prosperous people, they found a few lazy warriors easy to 
conquer, and a crowd of half-dressed women and children 
lying around the hot, sun-baked houses. 

Coronado marched on, lured by stories of richer places 
elsewhere. He marched through New Mexico, and as far 
as the great plains of Kansas. All the villages Explores 
he found were small, poor, and utterly destitute the West 
of gold and silver. There were no rich cities to be found. 
The stories were all myths. In all the region passeti 
through by Coronado there were only scattered villages 
composed of mud houses, and wild Indians whose chief 
occuj)ation was hunting buffaloes. 



36 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

In their wanderings the Spaniards came to a prairie covered 
with httle mounds out of which prairie dogs peered at 
them. Then they came to pools of salt water, bitter to the 
taste. Later on they encountered great herds of buffaloes. 
The Indians they met used corn for food, had implements 
made of copper, and were dressed in buffalo robes. 

After two years of marching and searching, Coronado and 
his men returned to Mexico. They had found no treasure 
and the seven cities of Cibola were mere myths, but the 
Spaniards had explored the great western plains of our 
country, and gained some idea of the extent of the new world 
and of the kind of people that inhabited it. 

In this way by exploration and adventure the southern 
part of our country became known to the Spaniards. In 
St. Augustine 1565 the Spaniards built a fort in Florida that 
and Sante Fe afterwards grew into the city of St. Augustine. 
It is the oldest town in the United States. In 1585 Santa 
Fe in the far west was founded. These explorations and 
settlements gave Spain a claim to a large part of the conti- 
nent. 

Nearly all the Spaniards who had explored America had 
come searching for wealth. Some had come for adventure 
Purposes of and some for conquest. In most cases they 
the Spaniards treated the Indians with great cruelty, and were 
in turn attacked and many were killed by the savages. 
Theirs is a sad story of a fruitless search for riches, of long 
marches amid great suffering, of disappointment and failure 
among the unbroken depths of the new world that they were 
the first to discover and explore. 



DISCOVKKKHS \ M ) I \ IM,< »H I KS 37 

12. THE FRENCH EXPLORE AND SETTLE CANADA 

France now turned lior attention to explorations and 
settlements in the new world. Since Spain was well estab- 
lished in the southern part of the continent Verrazano, 
France undertook to explore and settle the ^^^'^ 
northern part. A body of French explorers led l)v \>r- 
razano, an Italian in the service of France, as early as 1524 
had sailed along the coast of America all the way from North 
Carolina to Newfoundland. The party may have entered 
New York Bay and Narragansett Bay. 

Jacques Cartier while exploring the northern coasts saw 
the entrance of a great river. He sailed boldly in, named 
the river the St. Lawrence, and sought for a place to make a 
settlement. His men suffered so much for lack of food that 
after seeing a tall cliff which he named Montreal, he aban- 
doned his attempt. A few years later he returned and tried 
to found a colony where Quebec now stands, but the effort 
was a failure. 

Many years passed before France undertook any further 
explorations in America. The activities of Spain at last 
excited her ambition to gain a foothold in Quebec found- 
America. Samuel de Champlain, a French ^^ *" ^^^^ 
soldier, sailed along the coasts of New England, entered 
some of the harbors, and made maps of the places he visited. 
In 1608 he came to the St. I^awrence River and sailing up to 
the site selected by Cartier nearly seventy-live years before, 
he founded the city of Quebec. 

Champlain continued his journey far up \hv river, even 
visiting the Great I>akes themselves. He was the first 



38 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

white man to see that beautiful body of water called Lake 
Champlain in his honor. He crossed Lake Huron and Lake 
Ontario and explored the depths of the northern woods. He 
made friends with the Indians whom he impressed very 
greatly with his fair skin, and his armor that no arrow could 
pierce and his guns that gave out a noise like the thimder. 

The Algonquins and Hurons asked Champlain to aid them 
in their war against the fierce Iroquois. To this Champlain 
Exploits of agreed and a great war dance was held in 
Champlain Quebec. The French and Indian warriors were 
put into boats and went up the river until they came near 
the village of their enemies. Champlain and his few men 
marched in front showing their white skin and bright armor. 
Then the guns were fired and the mysterious bullets brought 
down an Indian at each shot. 

The Iroquois were too astonished to resist. They thought 
that their foes were aided by heavenly warriors who hurled 
thunder and lightning. Therefore they fled in terror, utter- 
ing loud cries, leaving their village to the mercy of their 
enemies. Henceforth, however, the Iroquois were the 
deadly enemies of the white men in the north. 

The colony at Quebec struggled on enduring great hard- 
ship. The winter was a terrible one, snow and ice almost 
^ ^ covering the little cabins. Food was scarce 

Quebec 

and many colonists were ill. In fact only 
eight were left aUve after the first winter. However, 
Champlain kept up the spirits of the colonists the best he 
could. After twenty years the town did not number more 
than one hundred and five persons. It has since grown into 
a great and beautiful city. 



DISCOVERERS AND EXPLORERS 39 

Thus we see that the Spaniards had occupied the southern 
part of America, the French had explored and settled Canada 
in the northern part, and it was left now for the English to 
come in and take possession of all that vast and beautiful 
domain that lay between. 

QUESTIONS 

1. When and where was Columbus born? Tell some incidents 
of his earlj^ life. Why did the merchants desire a seaway to India? 
What was the general idea of the shape of the earth? What did 
Columbus think? 

2. To whom did Columbus first appl}^ for assistance? How 
was he treated? To whom did he next apply? How was he received 
at the Spanish court? How wtis Columbus aided by the monk? 
What did Isabella consent to do? 

3. What were the names of the three vessels of Columbus? 
When and from where did they sail? What can you say of the 
fear of the sailors? What were the first signs of land? From which 
ship was land first seen? When was land discovered? What did 
Columbus name it? 

4. Dascribe the Indians that Columbus saw. How did the 
Indians live? What was their chief occupation? What was their 
appearance? What were some of their habits and customs? How 
did they wage war? What other island did Columbus visit? What 
did he take with him on his return to Spain? How was he re- 
ceived? Tell the story of Co]uinl)Us and the egg. 

5. What happened to the colonists at Haiti? How was Colum- 
bus unjustly treated? What did he say? How many voyages did 
Columbus make to America? How did ColumVius spend his old 
age? How old was he when he died and where was he buried? 

6. What can you say of the voyage of John Cabot? What land 
did he explore? What accounts did he give? What claim did he 



40 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

establish for England? Who was Americus Vespucius? How did 
America get its name? 

7. For what were the Spaniards especially eager in the new 
world? Who was Balboa? When and where did Balboa discover 
the Pacific Ocean? What did Magellan propose? Give an 
account of his voyage. What happened to Magellan? 

8. Who was Ponce de Leon? What did he dread? What did 
an Indian tell him? When was Florida discovered? How did it 
get its name? Tell about the search for the fountain of youth. 
What was De Leon's intention on his second voyage? How did 
De Leon come by his death? 

9. Who undertook to conquer Mexico? Describe the Aztec 
Indians. What were the wonderful stories told of the ruler of 
Mexico? How did Montezuma treat Cortez? How was Cortez 
received? How did the Spaniards act in Mexico? Describe the 
attack upon Cortez' men. How was Mexico finally conquered? 
When did Narvaez explore Florida? What sufferings did his men 
endure? 

10. Who was De Soto? When and where did he land? What 
did he take with him? Describe the march of De Soto. What did 
his followers find? How were they treated by the Indians? Relate 
the story of De Soto and the Indian princess. Describe the battle 
of Mavilla. What river did De Soto discover and when? Describe 
the death and burial of De Soto. 

11. Describe the explorations of Coronado. What portions 
of the country did he explore? What did he find? What is the 
oldest town in the United States? When was Santa Fe founded? 
What were the purposes of the Spaniards in America? 

12. What did France now undertake? What explorations had 
Verrazano made? Describe the voyage of Cartier. When was 
Quebec founded? What lakes did Champlain visit? Describe 
some of the exploits of Champlain. Describe the hardships at 
Quebec. Where had the Spanish and where had the French estab- 
lished their settlements? 



CHAPTER n 
THE ENGLISH COLONIES 



1. Sm WALTER RALEIGH AND THE LOST COLONY 

There was a brave knight in England named Sir Walter 
Raleigh. When Raleigh was a young man he was in a 
crowd watching Queen Elizabeth and her Raieigh and 
attendants go by. The path in front of the Queen Elizabeth 
queen was nmddy and she hesitated to go forward, fearing 
to soil her shoes. Raleigh, who was near the queen, quickly 
threw his cloak on the ground over the muddy places. 
The queen smiled and stepped on the cloak. She sent for 
the young man and offered to pay for the garment, but 
Raleigh gallantly replied, 'T desire only to be allowed to 
retain the cloak. It has become very precious since your 
Majesty's feet have touched it." This incident attached 
him to her service and he became a rich and powerful noble- 
man. 

Raleigh grew in favor with the queen. He was a brilliant, 
wealthy, and adventurous courtier. One of his cherished 
plans was to found a colony in the new world. The queen 
readily granted him permission, but being of a thrifty mind, 
said it nmst be done at his expense. 

Raleigh fitted out two ships, and sent some colonists 
across the ocean to plant a colony. After four months' sail- 

n 



42 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

ing they came to the shores of Roanoke Island, off the coast 

of North CaroUna. The colonists, however, did not Unger 

long. The land was very beautiful, but to 

Virginia , ,. . . i- i 

make a hvmg m a strange country was httle to 
their taste, so they decided to sail back to England. Raleigh 
named the land Virginia, in honor of Elizabeth, the virgin 
or unmarried queen. 

The next year Raleigh sent out another colony, which 
landed on Roanoke Island and began a town. However, 
Fate of the misfortunes overtook them and they came near 
first colony, starving to death. A passing ship took them 
^ back to England. They carried with them some 

things they had learned from the Indians. One was the 
use of the potato. Raleigh had some of the potatoes planted 
on his farm in Ireland. They grew so abundantly and were 
such good food that they have since become famous as the 
Irish potato. 

One other thing the colonists carried back was tobacco, 
which had been unknown in England up to that time. 
Raleigh learned to smoke, and the story is told that one day 
as he was smoking in his room his servant came in with a pot 
of ale. Thinking his master on fire, he cried out in alarm, 
'The master is on fire," and threw the ale into Raleigh's 
face. 

Raleigh tried again to found a colony in America. This 
time he sent across the ocean farmers, mechanics, and car- 
penters with their wives and children, thinking that famihes 
would be more content than single men. Captain John 
White was in charge of the expedition. 



THE KNCILISH COI.OXIKS 



4:^ 




The colonists landed on the island as before, built their 
houses, planted their gardens, and made friends with the 
Indians. When one of the chiefs came in to see Captain 
Whit€ he was given a lot of cheap jewelry, some colored 
cloth, a mirror, and a knife. Captain White then made him 
kneel down while he conferred on him the title of Lord of 
Roanoke. It is needless to say that the savage was delighted 
and became the warm friend of the colonists. 

The Indians were friendly, 

the crops were growing, and 

the weather was 

Virginia Dare ^^^^^^-^^^^^ ^here 

was great rejoicing when it 
was knowTi that a little girl 
was born, the daughter of 
Mrs. Dare, herself the daugh- 
ter of Governor Wliite. She 
was named Virginia Dare, 
and was the first white child 
of English parents to be born in what is now 
States. 

Governor White now returned to Kngland to get supplies. 
Pie expected to return in a few weeks, but when he reached 
England he found that count ly about to engage in war with 
Spain, and Governor ^^^lite could not get back to his Httle 
colony. He sent one ship out but the go\ernment seized it 
and sent it ofT to fight the Spaniards. The captain of an- 
other ship turned pirate and went after the Spaniards in 
th(^ West Indies. 







, /' 



'^^?y 



C^ Hatttra* 



Ralkk'.h's colony 



Unit^ 



44 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

At length Governor White found himself on his own ship 
on his way to the colonists, after three long years. Land 
was sighted one day about dark and a hght was seen on the 
shore. ^'The home of the colonists is in sight, and they are 
still alive," exclaimed the governor in great relief. A boat 
was lowered and a party went ashore. The men called 
aloud, blew trumpets, and fired off their guns, but there was 
neither sight nor sound of any of the colonists. 

The search continued all next day, but every man, woman, 
and child had disappeared. The abandoned cabins and the 
Fate of the fields overgrown with weeds were all that could 
second col- be seen. On a tree was carved the word 
°°^' Croatan. This was the name of a tribe of In- 

dians living on an island near by. 

It had been agreed that if the colonists, for any reason, 
had to abandon the settlement they would leave some 
directions behind them. Governor White tried to reach 
the village of the Indians, but the ship was driven off by a 
storm, and the captain insisted upon returning to England. 
No trace of the colonists has ever been found, and to this day 
no one knows what became of the lost colony of Roanoke. 



THE KNC.LISH COLONIES 45 

2. THE SETTLEMENT OF JAMESTOWN 

After the failure of the colony at Roanoke about twenty 
years passed before the English tried again to found a colony 
in America. Vessels continued ho\ve\'er to ply Plymouth 
back and forth between the new world and and London 
the old, bringing furs, woods, dyestuffs, and on^P^nies 
other things bought from the Indians. This valuable trade 
induced the English merchants to form companies for plant- 
ing colonies in \'irginia. One of these companies was 
called the Plymouth Company and the other was called the 
London Company. 

The London Company made haste to dispatch a body of 
colonists to that part of the land for which they had a grant. 
In December, 1606, three small ships sailed from England 
bound for the new world and Virginia. On board were 
one hundred and fi\e persons. The weather was very bad 
and the cold intense. It took four months to cross the 
ocean, during which time the voyagers suffered much hard- 
ship. As they approached the shores of America a storm 
drove the ships into the mouth of a large river. Up this 
stream the colonists sailed, glad to be rid of the perils and 
discomforts of the seas. 

It was now spring, and the colonists were very glad to see 
the green shores, to hear the birds sing, and to smell the 
flowers. After sailing up the river thirty or Jamestown, 
forty miles they selected a place for their colony ^^^ ^^' ^^^ 
and named it Jamestown. The river and the town both 
were named for James I, the king of England. It was the 



46 



FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 



first English settlement in America that became a permanent 
colony. 

The colonists were not well suited for hfe in the wilderness. 
There were a few carpenters, a blacksmith, a mason, a barber, 
a tailor, twelve laborers, and about fifty gentle- 
men who did not know how to work and who 
came only for adventure. A few tents were erected, cabins 



The colonists 




The beginnings of the Jamestown settlement 



were started, and a church was made by stretching a canvas 
over some rough boards nailed between two trees. Some 
of the colonists contented themselves by making caves in 
the hillsides to live in. Before long most of the food ga\^e 
out, many of the colonists were ill with fever and began to 
quarrel among themselves and to complain of their leaders. 
The Indians became unfriendly and even attacked the men 



THE ENGLISH COLONIES 47 

while they were at work. By the end of the summer half 
of the colonists died. 

It was a discouraging start for the colony. Everybody 
might have perished had it not been for Captain John Smith. 
He was a young man who had had many Captain 
strange adventures. Upon one occasion he had J°^ ^""^^ 
gone to sea, had been thrown overboard in the Mediter- 
raneiin, had swum to the shore of a desert island, and later 
had been picked up and carried to Egypt. Among other 
adventures he had been captured by the Turks and sold 
into slavery. He escaped and fled into Europe, wandering 
across the country until he reached England. There he 
joined the colonists on their way to Virginia. 

Smith took charge of the colony. He set every man to 
work, saying that those who would not work should not eat. 
They needed food, but the Indians would not give or sell 
them any corn. Smith took a body of soldiers and went to 
the Indians. "Sell me corn," said he, "or I shall have to 
take it by force. '^ The Indians laughed at him and said: 
"We will give you a handful of corn for all the guns and 
swords of your men." This made Smith so angry tliat he 
attacked the Indians, drove them out of their village, and 
captured their hideous idol. WTien the savages saw their 
idol in the hands of the white men, they offered a boat 
load of corn as a ransom for it. Smith was glad to make 
the exchange. 

By treating the Indians honestly when he could, fighting 
them when he was compelled to do so, and forcing the 
colonists to strict economy and hard work, Capt^iin Smith 
saved the colony from destruction. 



48 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

3. POCAHONTAS, THE INDIAN PRINCESS 

Not far from Jamestown lived King Powhatan, a great 
Indian chief. He had a young daughter named Pocahontas 
of whom he was very proud. He loved her devotedly and 
gave her everything she asked for. 

One day some warriors came into the Indian village 
bringing Captain John Smith a prisoner. It seems that 
Adventures Captain Smith with a few men and two Indian 
of John guides was exploring the country around the 

Chickahominy River. After sailing up the 
river he went ashore with one of the Indian guides, leaving 
the rest of the party to prepare supper. In a short time he 
heard cries and sounds of battle from the direction of his 
canoe. The Indians had attacked his party and killed every 
one of them, leaving Smith and his guide alone in the forest. 

Smith tied the Indian fast to his arm so that he could not 
escape and both began to run. Arrows flew from the 
bushes around them, one of them striking Smith in the leg. 
He held on to his guide and used him as a shield, but in his 
haste he and his guide ran into a quicksand up to their 
waists, and were held fast so that they were easily captured 
by their pursuers. 

The savages pulled their captives from the mud, took 
them to the village, washed their bodies and dried their 
clothes. Smith knew by their signs that they were making 
ready for a great time when they would torture him to death. 
In order to amuse and divert the savages Smith took out 
his pocket compass and showed it to the Indian chief. The 
chief looked at the trembhng needle which he could see but 



THE ENGLISH COLONIES 49 

could not touch on account of the glass. He was so aston- 
ished that he decided not to kill Smith at once, but to senti 
him to Powhatan. 

The king was delighted to sec the white man in his power, 
and decided to fatten him up before the time came to kill 
him. He made Smith eat so much deer meat and bread 
that the Captain fell ill and needed medicine. He asked 
Powhatan to let him send word to his friends in Jamestown 
that they might know w^here he was. To this Powhatan 
readily consented. Smith wrote a note with a burnt stick on 
a piece of bark and gave it to a messenger to take to the 
colon3\ The messenger soon returned with presents for 
the chief and w^th articles that Smith needed. Powhatan 
was greatly impressed by the ability of the white man to 
make a piece of bark talk by merely marking on it, but was 
not deterred from his intention to put Smith to death. 

Smith was kept prisoner for several days, while the 
Indians listened to his wonderful stories of what he could 
do. He told them about the sun and the moon, gmith 
about the great ships that brought him to amuses the 
America, and the great cities across the ocean. 
He closely watched the Indians, and learned a great deal 
about the way they Hved. In fact he afterwards wrote a 
book about his adventures, and while we may not beheve 
all the remarkable exploits whicli lie tells about, yet it is 
quite true that he had many wonderful adventures. 

Among those w^ho listened eagerly to the wonderful 
stories was Pocahontas. She was only twelve years old, 
but had already learned to admire the white man. She 



50 



FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 



would sit at the feet of the prisoner for hours at a time while 
he told her of his adventures in the East and of all the 
wonders of the great country across the ocean. 

At last the day came to settle the fate of Captain Smith. 
He was led into the tent of Powhatan. The chief clothed 
in raccoon skins sat on a bench. Around him stood the 




Pocahontas saves John Smith 



warriors, some of whom had clubs in their hands. His wives 
sat around him, and before them burned the wigwam fire. 
Two stones were brought in and Smith was compelled to 
Pocahontas ^^ down with his head on them, 
saves his The sign was given to dash out the brains of 

® the prisoner. The warriors approached, clubs 

in hand, to obey the order. But Pocahontas rushed for- 
ward, threw herself in front of the warriors, took Smith's 



I Hi: K.\(iLlSII ( OLOMKS 51 

head in her amis, and begged h(»r father to spare his life. 
The old chief could deny his daughter nothing. Smith was 
released and was adopted by Powhatan as his son. 

After a while he was allowed to return to Jamestown. 
Pocahontas soon became the firm friend of the white men. 
She often came to Jamestown and brought corn Marriage of 
and vegetables to the colonists. She played Pocahontas 
about the village, and was greatly beloved by everybody. 
When she was grown Pocahontas became a Christian, and 
was baptized with the name of Rebecca. She was called 
Lady Rebecca, since she was a true princess, being a daugh- 
ter of a king. A young Englishman of Jamestown, named 
John Rolfe, fell in love with Pocahontas and asked Pow- 
hatan's consent to their marriage. The old chief agreed, and 
there was a wedding which both Indians and white men 
attended. Rolfe and his Indian princess went to England and 
were received at court with great distinction. As they were 
about to return to their home in Virginia, Pocahontas was 
taken ill. In a few days she died, leaving a httle son. This 
son afterwards grew to be a man and came to Virginia. From 
him have descended some of the best famihes in that State. 



52 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

4. PROGRESS OF JAMESTOWN 

Captain Smith remained with the colonists several years. 
On one of his trips he was badly injured by the explosion of a 
bag of powder on board a ship. He jumped overboard to 
put out the flames, and was rescued by his companions with 
difficulty. This injury made it necessary for him to go to 
England. He never returned to the colony, though he did 
explore the coast of New England and made valuable maps 
of that portion of the country. He spent the last years of 
his life in England, dying at the age of fifty- two. 

Jamestown missed the strong hand of Captain Smith to 
guide and control the colony. The men became idle, or 
"The starving hunted for gold instead of planting crops. 
Time," The Indians would not sell their corn or supply 

any kind of food. The few friendly Indians 
could not aid them much for fear of the others. As a result 
the colonists were soon reduced to starvation. The hungry 
people ate rats, dogs, hzards, roots, berries, and whatever 
else they could find. The Indians watched their wasted 
and gaunt forms with ill-concealed satisfaction. By the end 
of the winter only sixty out of the five hundred colonists 
were left alive. All the others had miserably perished. 
The dreadful period is known as 'The Starving Time." 

In the midst of this disaster a shipload of colonists and 
supphes arrived under command of Sir Thomas Gates. This 
ship had met misfortune on its way over and had spent the 
winter at one of the Bermuda Islands. When spring came 
Gates sailed for Jamestown, where he found the colonists 
there almost perishing for food. If he had been ten days 
later not a soul would have been alive. 



THE ENGLISH COLONIES 



53 



Tobacco 



In this strait Gates, who had only two weeks' food for his 
own colonists, decided to take them all to Newfoundland 
^^rnval ^^^ abandon the colony at Jamestown. When 
of Lord the ship reached 

Delaware the mouth of the 

James River with every- 
body on board, it was 
met by a fleet of vessels 
with more colonists and 
plenty of food, and with 
Lord Delaware in com- 
mand. Gladly they went 
back to their homes at 
Jamestown and started 
again. Had it not been 
for the timely arrival of 
a ship with supphes, the 
whole colony would have 
perished. 

After a while the colony 
began again to prosper. 

The people 

found that 
there was a great demand 
in England for tobacco. 
The colonists now turned 

their attention to its cultivation in quantities. Such was 
the demand that even the streets of Jamestown were planted 
with it. It became the money of the colonists. The sala- 




Settlements in Virginia 



54 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

ries of the ministers and of the pubHc officers, as well as the 
taxes, were paid in tobacco. 

Twelve years after the settlement of the colony a Dutch 
ship appeared one day in the harbor of Jamestown. On 
Introduction board were twenty negroes that were sold to 
of siaveiy, the colonists. This was the beginning of negro 
slavery in our country. The negroes were good 
field hands, being able to stand the summer heat better than 
the white man. They were easy to control, and not expen- 
sive to support. At that time the slave trade was not con- 
sidered wrong. Even kings and queens gave it their 
sanction and encouraged ships to go to the coast of Africa 
to buy the unhappy negroes and sell them in any part of the 
world in which they could find a market. No one foresaw 
the consequences that would follow the purchasing of a 
few slaves by the colonists at Jamestown. None knew 
that it was the beginning of a system of slavery that was 
to have a tremendous influence upon the history of our 
country. 

In the same year that the slaves were brought, another 
event of great importance happened. Up to this time 
Wives for there were few women in the colony, and the 
the colonists, young men of Jamestown were anxious to 
establish homes. If they were to live per- 
manently and happily in America they must have wives and 
children. Reahzing this, the Company in England in charge 
of the colony sent out a ship with ninety young women 
of good character, who were willing to come to America and 
marry the men of Jamestown. 



THE ENGLISH COLONIES 



55 



There was great excitement when the ship 
arrived. The men dressed in their best and 
welcomed the maidens with great heartiness. 
No maid was compelled to marry against her 
consent, and each one could choose the hus- 
band that suited her. It was not long before 
ninety weddings were celebrated in Jamestown 
and vicinity. Each man wilhngly paid the 
Company the one hundred and twenty 
pounds of tobacco required to cover the 
cost of the passage of his wife to America. 
Other ships came over bringing wives for 
the colonists. The settlers now had 
homes and were content to remain per- 
manently in the new world. From this 
time all went well at Jamestown. 



The wooing of the maidens 



56 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

5. NATHANIEL BACON AND HIS REBELLION 

Virginia grew in population and the settlements increased 
in size and number. Civil war in England induced many- 
friends of King Charles I to come over to America and settle 
on large estates in Virginia. They were called cavaliers 
because they were adherents to the king. Many of them 
belonged to the best people in England, and became the 
ancestors of many prominent families in Virginia. 

These planters owned large tracts of land, lying along 
the river, and devoted themselves almost entirely to raising 
tobacco and home supphes. They built large colonial 
mansions, had slaves in abundance, and lived in ease and 
elegance. In a half-century of growth Virginia had forty 
thousand inhabitants, and was a prosperous colony. 

Having become a royal colony the governors of Virginia 
were appointed by the king. Some of these governors were 
Sir waiiam wise and some were unwise. Among them was 
Berkeley gjj. William Berkeley who was sent over in 1642 

and remained governor for over thirty years. He was an 
aristocrat and had but little interest in the conmion people 
of the colony. He preferred fine clothes and high living 
to the real duties of his office. Besides that he was rough, 
hot-tempered, and narrow-minded, so that the colonists 
cordially disliked him. He did not believe in the education 
of the people and said, ''I thank God there are no free 
schools and printing presses in Virginia." We shall see, 
however, that that kind of man was no fit ruler for the free 
American spirit. 



THE ENGLISH COLONIES 57 

An extensive trade in furs had grown up between the 
settlers and the Indians. This Governor Berkeley found 
to be profitable, and so he refused to have the Indians 
punished for the massacre of men, women, and children 
in the outlying settlements. It was made unlawful for 
anyone to lead a body of soldiers against the Indians 
without a commission from the governor. 

One of the colonists at Jamestown was a rich and popular 
young lawyer, named Nathaniel Bacon. Upon one occa- 
sion, after the Indians had been giving trouble. Bacon, the 
a crowd of citizens gathered and waited for some deader 
one to lead them. Seeing Bacon approaching, they called 
out, ''Bacon! Bacon!" He agreed to lead them against the 
Indians, as well as to join them in their protest against the 
conduct of the governor. 

Without the consent of the governor Bacon and his fol- 
lowers marched against the Indians and punished them. 
When Berkeley heard of it he was angry and declared Bacon 
a rebel and a traitor. Bacon did not care, and neither did the 
people. They were thoroughly aroused against the old 
tyrant. They compelled him to order an election for a new 
assembly. Bacon was chosen a member. Many of the old 
oppressive laws were repealed and wiser ones were enacted 
in their stead. Bacon was also promised a commission 
to fight the Indians. 

Fearing treachery on the part of the gov- Bacon and 
ernor, Bacon assembled a party of five hundred 
men and paraded before the statehouse. Berkeley came 
out, called Bacon a traitor and a rebel, and declared that 



58 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

he should not have his commission. To show that he was 
not afraid, Berkeley tore open his shirt front and baring his 
bosom dared the soldiers to shoot. 

Berkeley wanted to fight Bacon, and challenged him to 
a combat with swords. Bacon replied: ^^I came not to 
hurt a hair of your head, and as for your sword, your Honor 
may please to put it up. I came for a commission to lead 
these men against the Indians." At last Bacon was given 
his commission. 

Hardly had he left Jamestown to fight the savages, before 
Berkeley, in his rage, again declared him a traitor and a 
Jamestown rebel, whereupon Bacon marched back. Ber- 
bumed, 1676 j^eJey fle(^ ^nd tried to raise troops of his own 
to attack Bacon and his followers. To prevent Jamestown 
from falhng into the hands of the oppressor, it was agreed 
to set fire to it. Some of Bacon's men burned their own 
homes in their eagerness. Bacon was seized with fever 
and died after a brief illness. 

Berkeley returned to the almost destroyed city and 
hunted down those who had followed the brave leader. 
Twenty-two of them he hanged; others he threw into prison. 
Berkeley was soon after recalled to England by King Charles 
II. This king said of him, '^He has hanged more people 
in that naked country than I did for the murder of my father. ' ' 
Bacon's Rebellion showed at this early date the deter- 
mination of the colonists to resist any kind of oppression. 

A few years later the capital of Virginia was moved to 
Wilhamsburg, and Jamestown went into decay. An old 
vine-covered tower is now all that is left of the first perma- 
nent settlement of English colonists in America. 



THE ENGLISH COLONIES 



59 



6. THE SETTLEMENT OF PLYMOUTH 

Thirteen years after the settlement of Jamestown a 
body of English Puritans landed on the coast of New 
England and founded the colony of Plymouth. This por- 
tion of the coast of the new world had been explored several 
years before by Captain John Smith, and the region had 
been named by him New England. 




Signing the Mayflower Compact 



These Puritans at one time had lived in England, 
had left that country because their consciences 
not permit them to worship God according to 
the methods of the English Church. They 
desired to purify the church of its evil practices, and for that 
reason they were called Puritans. They were persecuted in 



They 
would 



The Puritans 



60 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

England and their lives were so unhappy that they deter- 
mined to leave their native land. 

Many of them moved to Holland to find a refuge from 
persecution. From that country a body of about one hun- 
dred came in the Mayflower to find in America 
freedom to worship God. On account of their 
wanderings they received the name of ' 'Pilgrims. " Before 
landing, the Pilgrims gathered in the cabin of the Mayflower 
and signed an agreement by which they pledged themselves 
to obey such laws as should be made for the government of 
the colony. They then chose one of their number, John 
Carver, to be governor for one year. 

It was a cold December day when they landed at Ply- 
mouth. Rude cabins were built and covered with thatch. 
, _.. ^ The cracks were filled with mud to keep out 

Landing of ^ 

the Pilgrims, the biting wind. Oiled paper was used in the 
December 21, windows in place of glass. The weather was 
so cold that the women and children, and many 
of the men, had to remain on board the Mayflower until 
spring. During that first winter more than forty of them, 
including Governor Carver, died. The survivors were very 
brave, however, and in the spring, when the Mayflower set 
sail for England, not one of the Pilgrims returned with her. 
Among the leaders of the Plymouth Colony was Captain 
Miles Standish. He was small in size and had yellow hair 
Miles and beard, on account of which he was some- 

standish ^jj^gg called ''Captain Shrimp." He was quick 

of temper and brave as a Hon in his deahngs with the Indians, 
which made them call him ^'boihng water.'' He, with sixteen 



THE ENGLISH COLONIES 61 

others, was the first to land from the Mayflower and explore 
the coast. 

Captain Standish took charge of the Plymouth Colony. 
He made every man carry his gun and be ready to use it, 
even when going to and returning from church. He 
drilled the soldiers, inspired courage, and secured peace 
and prosperity for Plymouth. 

The Indians stood in great awe of him. Once when a 
friendly Indian had been made prisoner by some unfriendly 
Indians, Standish marched with nine men to the Indian 
village, and placing his men around the house of the chief, 
boldly entered and demanded the prisoner. 

The Indians were alarmed at this sudden appearance of 
the soldier, and ran out of the house as fast as they could. 
The prisoner was soon found and dehvered to his friends. 
Standish and his men spent the night in the chief's house, 
not allowing any of the Indians to come in. The next 
day they marched in triumph back to Plymouth. 

Another time Captain Standish had gone in a boat to buy 
some corn from the Indians who lived down the coast. The 
wind ceased to blow, and he was compelled to Adventures of 
pass the night on shore. The Indians talked in ^^^^ standish 
a friendly way, but Standish discovered a plot to kill him 
in the night. One Indian invited him to go to his house to 
sleep. Standish accepted the invitation and went into the 
house, but instead of lying down, he loaded his gun and 
kept it ready on his knee as he sat by the fire. 

The Indian begged him to go to sleep, but Standish knew 
that if he did the Indian would kill him. So he stayed 



62 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

awake all night, his gun ready, the Indian watching him 
closely. When morning came he backed out of the house, 
and made the Indian follow him to the boat and back to 
Plymouth. His courage had made the savage afraid to 
attack him. 

Captain Standish was as tender-hearted as he was brave. 
During the hardships of the first winter he and six others 
were the only well ones in the entire colony. They cut the 
wood, made the fires, cooked the food, and washed the 
clothes for nearly all the colonists. 



THE ENGLISH COLONIES 63 

7. OTHER COLONIES IN NEW ENGLAND 

The colonists of Plymouth were very happy when the 
spring came. They set about building more cabins, planting 
gardens and fields, and making friends with the Indians. 

In the early spring an Indian named Samoset walked 
into Plymouth and called out, ''Welcome, Englishmen!" 
He had learned a little English from the fisher- Samoset and 
men on the coast of Maine. He went away and Squanto 
returned with another Indian named Squanto. Squanto 
had once been stolen by traders and sold into slavery in 
Spain. An Englishman had rescued him and sent him back 
to his own people. For this reason he became the firm 
friend of the white men at Plymouth. 

Squanto taught the Pilgrims how to plant their corn, 
and how to fertilize the ground by dropping a dead herring 
by the side of each grain. He also showed them how to 
catch fish. By his aid a treaty of friendship that lasted for 
more than fifty years, was made with Massasoit, the Indian 
chief. 

At one time Massasoit was ill with fever, and nigh unto 
death . Edward Winslo w and two attendants from Plymouth 
set out for his refief . The king was lying on a niness of 
bed of skins, full of dirt and filth. The wigwam Massasoit 
was shut up tight, so that it was dark and stifling within. 
Outside, the medicine men were making hideous noises to 
drive away the evil spirits. The king's lips were dry, his 
skin was parched, and his eyes rolled with the fever. 

Winslow drove the people out of the tent, and opened it 
up for air and light. He bathed the king in water and gave 



64 



FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 



him a cool, clean bed to lie upon. He wet his hps with 
water and gave him some medicine. Then he ordered 
ail noise to cease. Soon the king fell asleep and awoke next 
day refreshed. At the end of three days the fever left him, 
and in a few weeks he was well and walking about. "Now 




The treaty with Massasoit 



I know the EngHsh are my friends/' said the grateful king. 
As long as he Hved he showed his gratitude for this service. 
WilUam Bradford had been chosen to succeed John 
Carver as governor of the colony. Canonicus was the chief 
Bradford and of the Narragansett Indians, a tribe un- 
Canonicus friendly to the whites. Canonicus sent Gover- 
nor Bradford a challenge in the shape of a bundle of arrows 
tied with a snake skin. Bradford returned the snake skin 



THE ENGLISH COLONIES 



65 



filled with powder and shot. When Canonicus saw that 
Bradford was not afraid, he decided to let him and his brave 
men alone. 




Thanksgiving 



Governor Bradford returns the challenge of Canonicus 

The first siunmer passed, the autumn came on, and the 
corn had ripened in the field. The Pilgrims had built their 
homes and the Indians were friendly. The 
colonists desired to show their gratitude to God 
by giving a week of Thanksgiving. The young men and the 
Indians shot deer and wild turkeys. The women gathered 
the com and cooked the food. Under the trees the tables 
were spread. The men sat down with their Indian friends, 
while their wives and the maidens served them. There 
were shooting matches and sports of all kinds, in which the 
Indians joined. It was our first Thanksgiving. 



66 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

Eight years after the PljTnouth Colony was founded, a 
body of Puritans came from England and formed a settle- 
Salemand ment on the coast a few miles farther north. 
Boston They named the colony Salem. Two years 

afterwards about one thousand more Puritans came over, 
under the leadership of John Winthrop, and made a settle- 
ment which they named Boston. 

The colonies in New England grew in size and number as 
people came from England. By 1640 as many as twenty 
thousand colonists had found homes in what is now called 
the State of Massachusetts. 

Governor John Winthrop was as remarkable in his way as 
any of the men who founded colonies in America. He was 
Governor brave, independent, and severely rehgious. 

John He was so generous to the colonists that at one 

^ °^ time during a severe winter when he had but 

one loaf of bread in his oven, he gave it all to a man who 
came begging some meal. 

As Boston grew amd other towns were settled near by, 
Governor Winthrop found that he had plenty to do. Every 
shipload brought over laborers of all sorts, who had to be set 
to work. The carpenter was put to building houses, the 
mason to laying brick, the stone-cutter to hewing stones, 
and the farmer to planting corn and vegetables. His was 
a busy life. He worked every day with his own hands. 
Winthrop's Governor Winthrop had his own way of 

management dealing with people. When, for example, an 
angry man sent him a letter, written in a bad temper, the 
governor sent it back to him, saying he was not willing to keep 



THE ENGLISH COLONIES 67 

such a letter; the man who wrote it was the man to have 
it. The writer soon apologized to the governor for his 
rudeness. 

At another time when the winter was very cold, the gov- 
ernor heard that a certain needy neighbor had been steahng 
wood from his woodpile. The governor said, ''I will arrange 
it, so that he will not steal any more of my wood." He sent 
for the man and said to him, ''My friend, it is a severe win- 
ter, and I have no doubt you need wood. There is my wood- 
pile. If you need wood, take it, until the spring comes, 
when you can repay me." In this way the poor man was 
provided for, and the governor made him ashamed of his 
act. 

An old writer of that time. Cotton Mather by name, 
says: 'The governor sometimes made his own private 
purse to be the pubhc purse, not by sucking into it, but by 
squeezing out of it. It was his custom to send some of his 
family on errands into the houses of the poor, about their 
meal time on purpose to spy whether they wanted, and if it 
were found that they wanted, he would make that the 
opportunity of sending supplies to them." 



68 



FIRST LESSONvS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 



8. EXILES FROM THE NEW ENGLAND COLONIES 

Roger Williams was a young Puritan minister who had 
left England on account of persecution. He preached first 



at Salem, but afterwards at Plymouth and 
in the other colonies. His congregation was 
small, but his earnestness and his labors among the poor and 



Roger 
Williams 




Roger Williams among the Indians 

sick made him greatly beloved. Williams had often visited 
the Narragansett Indians, had slept in their wigwams, eaten 
their food, and learned their language. He went hunting 
and fishing with his Indian friends and from them learned 
many of the secrets of woodcraft. They became his firm 



THE ENGLISH COLONIES 69 

friends and always made him welcome to their villages and 
their camp fires. 

At Salem, Williams became very bold in his preaching 
against certain doctrines of his Puritan brethren. For 
instance, it was the law that everybody had to go to church 
whether he wished to go or not. Whenever the drmn beat, 
or the horn blew, or the bell rang for meeting, everybody who 
was not sick in bed had to march to church. Roger Wil- 
liams said, ''We should not make people go to church. If 
their consciences do not urge them to attend worship, their 
going does no good." 

Another law was that everybody should be taxed to 
support the church. Williams thought this was wrong. 
He said, ''Every man should pay according to His bold 
his conscience. He should not be taxed for his teaching 
religion, but should contribute of his own free will." But 
this was not all. Williams boldly declared the king of 
England had no right to give away the Indian lands in 
America. He said, "They do not belong to him but to the 
natives themselves. The Indians hold the titles and it is 
from them that the land must be bought." 

This was too much for the Puritans. They declared such 
a man was dangerous to the church and a menace to the 
colony. They haled him before the Court, where he was 
told to cease preaching his strange doctrine or he would be 
sent back to England. Williams repUed very boldly, "I 
came here to find freedom of conscience and freedom of 
speech. I shall continue to preach and I shall not return 
to England." 



70 



FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 



He went on preaching his doctrines as before. The Puri- 
tans decided to arrest him and put him on a ship bound for 
England. The kind Governor Winthrop se- 
cretly sent him word that he would' be arrested 
unless he made good his escape. Williams hastily took a 
package of food, his heavy clothing, and a stick, and leaving 
his wife and children, committed himself to the wilderness. 




Settlements in the New England Colonies 

It was in the heart of winter. Through ice and snow for 
many days he wandered until he reached the wigwam of 
Massasoit. Here the old chief said to him, ''Rest here 
Providence till the snow has melted from the hills and the 
founded, 1636 spring has come. No one shall drive you from 
the wigwam of your friends." In the spring Williams sent for 
his wife and children, and with a few other friends journeyed 
to Narragansett Bay and selected a place for a colony. He 
named it Providence. 



THE ENGLISH COLONIES 71 

Other settlers found their way to the home of the exile. 
Land was bought from the Indians, who promised not to 
disturb the new settlement. This was the beginning of the 
colony of Rhode Island. 

The men in Boston were accustomed to hold meetings to 
which women were not admitted. In these meetings they 
discussed rehgious and political matters. Mrs . Mrs. Anne 
Anne Hutchinson, a woman of talent and spirit, Hutchinson 
declared that women had a right to speak. Accordingly, 
she held meetings in her house and discussed pubhc affairs. 
Her teachings were quite different from those of the minis- 
ters, and soon the whole colony was divided into factions. 
Mrs. Hutchinson was exiled from the colony, as WilUams 
had been. She made her way to the settlement of Roger 
Williams, and afterwards she and her followers founded 
colonies at Portsmouth and at Newport. 

In the same year that Roger Williams founded Providence, 
another preacher, Thomas Hooker, dissatisfied with the 
government of Boston, gathered his congrega- Thomas 
tion and started on a journey through the Hooker 
wilderness. They travelled slowly, driving their cows before 
them, and finally settled in the Connecticut valley, begin- 
ning the town of Hartford. Other colonists followed, and 
other towns were founded. These towns were united into 
one government and called Connecticut. These towns 
agreed to be governed by the provisions of a written con- 
stitution. It is the first time in history that a written 
constitution was adopted to create a government. It 
marked the beginnings of American democracy. 



72 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

9. JOHN ELIOT, THE APOSTLE TO THE INDIANS 

When the colonists came to America they found Indians 
Hving in all parts of the country. Some of the Indian 
tribes were friendly, and some of them were hostile. With 
some the colonists made treaties of peace and friendship; 
with others there was constant war. 

The English colonists generally tried to be fair and 
friendly with the Indians. The white men went into the 
Indian villages with presents of knives, axes, jewelry, and 
gaudy cloth to exchange for furs, corn, vegetables, and to- 
bacco. The Indians wandered through the white settle- 
ments selling their wares and looking with wonder and 
admiration at the possessions of their new neighbors. 

From the Indians the white men learned many things 
about the woods. They learned how to make snowshoes, 
Fear of the and build canoes, and trap wild animals, and 
Indians imitate the cries of birds, and how to spear 

fish in the river, and how to plant corn and raise tobacco. 
In fact many of the pioneers were almost as skilled in wood- 
craft as the savages themselves. Still the colonists hved 
in great dread of Indian uprisings. These would occur in 
spite of all precautions and often without apparent cause. 
In those uprisings the Indians burned the dwelhngs and 
massacred the colonists without mercy or carried them away 
as prisoners. 

To protect themselves from this ever-present danger, the 
colonists built stockade forts, consisting of a few houses 
surrounded by a tall fence. For further protection block- 
houses were also built. 



THE ENGLISH COLONIES 73 

In these forts and blockhouses the colonists found a refuge 
from danger, as well as a place from which they could fight 
the savages to advantage. In such constant 

° . . , . Blockhouses 

watchfulness did the colonists live that it was 
the rule for the men always to have their guns at hand. 
They carried their guns to the field when they went to 
work, and took them to church when they went to worship. 
It was not the purpose of the EngUsh colonists to make 
war on the savages, as the Spaniards had done. The EngHsh 
desired peace and were anxious to teach the ^ 

^ . John Eliot 

savages to live a civilized life. For this purpose 
schools were estabhshed for the Indians and preachers were 
sent to their villages. Among the most noted of these 
preachers was John Ehot, the ''Apostle to the Indians." 

John Ehot came from England eleven years after the 
settlement of Plymouth. He had been a busy student 
at college and had dihgently studied different languages. 
For fourteen years he devoted himself to the study of 
the Indian language, and wrote for the Indians a trans- 
lation of the Bible. 

Ehot's Bible is a curious book, very rare and costly at the 
present day, and one which very few can read. To desig- 
nate a good chief, such as Joshua or Gideon, 
Eliot used the word ''mugwump," a word which Eliot's Bible 
we sometimes hear at the present day. 

After he had been in Massachusetts for fifteen years 
Ehot began preaching to the Indians in their own language. 
He went from village to village, gathered the Preaching to 
Indians under the trees, and preached to them ^^® Indians 



74 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

by the hour. The Indians were kept awake by the dis 
tribution of presents. His sermons were very long. The 
savages could ill appreciate a religion that kept them from 
slaying and scalping their enemies. Some were converted, 
but others listened with scorn. 

After twenty years of preaching the number of the con- 
verted or "praying Indians," as they were called in derision, 
reached four thousand. These were mainly from the 
weaker tribes in New England. The great tribes of Wam- 
panoags and Narragansetts, which gave so much trouble, 
furnished few converts. 



THE ENGLISH COLONIES 75 

10. KING PHILIP^S WAR 

Massasoit, the chief of the Wampanoags, was the true 
friend of the settlers of New England. lie had two young 
sons whom he brought to the governor at Ply- Alexander 
mouth, saying, "I wish you to give Enghsh and PhiHp 
names to my boys." The governor named one of them 
Alexander and the other Phihp. After Massasoit died 
Alexander became chief in his stead. The people of Ply- 
mouth heard that Alexander was plotting mischief and sent for 
him. He came reluctantly, and proved that he was innocent 
of the charges against him. On his way homeward he was 
seized with fever and died. The Indians, however, thought 
that he had been poisoned, and began to plot revenge 
against the whites. 

PhiUp became chief and nursed his wrath for years. He 
was a vain and proud Indian and called himself King 
Phihp. He had a cruel and vengeful nature, and cordially 
hated the white settlers. 

All the Indians, including the Narragansetts, resolved on 
an uprising against the whites. One Sunday a party of 
Indians attacked the town of Swansea, and King Philip's 
murdered some of the people as they were com- War, 1675- 
ing from church. A dreadful war, led by Philip, 
and known as King Philip's War, now ensued. Many towns 
were burned, and over six hundred white men were killed or 
captured by the Indians. As for the savages their losses 
were even greater. 

A thousand white men went in pursuit of the bloody sav- 
ages determined to put an end to this warfare. The Indians 



76 



FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 



numbered three thousand braves in all. Their stronghold 
was attacked and more than seven hundred were killed. 
Phihp and his remaining followers were chased into a swamp 
in Rhode Island. One of Phihp 's braves advised him to 
surrender. For this advice the chief hfted his tomahawk 
and struck the Indian dead. The brother of the slain 
warrior swiftly crept through the bushes to the camp of the 



l/li^ 


1 


ilM^M 


ilii 


K 


ffl 


F^ 




tt 


ffxT wMWi 


|jp^pj^w ^1^ 


IWM^Mff^j 


^nj^^ 


TS^y^ 


Ir^ 




^tm 




^^^^^^S^mr 


Mm^^w^ 


^^^^ 


y^p 


A i^ 




^fr 




^^^^Bp 


Wn^m 


^^8 


^ft 


^ijre 




w! 


}s^^^^^^ 


^H 


^H 


■ 


1 


^B 




i 




^^B 


^8 


B 


g 


^S 




1 




^^^^^^ 


w^^^M 


^^^B 


^^ 


^^^^ 




hI 




pS^^^^P 


^^^^^E 


^^^S 


^H 


^H^^^ 




^^ 




^^^Bm 


'^^^m 


^§ 


^ 


^^^ 




g. 


1 w>^ ^* 


^^ 


B 


H 


B 


^^ 




^ 


ji^rujj^ 


«>■* 


'r -^ • 


^?^ 


' ^- ' •- 


— -^ .^ 



The death of King Philip 



white men and offered to guide them to the hiding place of 
King Philip. 

The party soon reached the place in the swamp where 
the chief was concealed. As soon as Philip saw them he 
started to run, but the Indian guide raised his rifle and shot 
him through the heart. Phihp fell forward into a pool 
of water and his followers took to flight. His head was 



THE ENGLISH COLONIES 77 

cut off and sent to Plymouth, where it was exposed upon 
a pole in the village green. This was the end of King 
Philip's War. Many of the captives, including Death of 
the nine-year-old son of PhiUp, were sold as ^^p 
slaves. The power of the Indians in that part of the country 
was broken forever, and the colonies were left to prosper 
in peace. 



78 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

11. THE DUTCH COME TO THE NEW WORLD 

We have seen that the English settled in Virginia, and in 
New England. Let us now learn how the Dutch founded 
an American colony that has since become the great city of 
New York. 

Two years after Jamestown was settled, and eleven years 
before the Pilgrims landed at Plymouth, a Dutch ship, 
Henry Commanded by Henry Hudson, an Enghshman, 

Hudson entered what is now New York Bay. The 

ship was named the Half Moon. Hudson had been sent 
out by a Dutch compan}^, kno\vn as the East India Com- 
pany, to find a short way to China. He did not know how 
far west the new world extended, but hoped to find some 
strait that would allow his vessel to pass through to the 
Pacific Ocean. 

His ship entered the mouth of a river which in his honor 
was afterwards named the Hudson River. Here his ship 
lay at anchor for a week while his men fished and explored. 

At the end of the week Captain Hudson weighed anchor 
and sailed a little way into the bay, where he stopped again 
The Indians to explore. Canoes full of Indians came to the 
greet Hudson gj^g ^f j^jg yessel. The savages made signs of 
friendship, and offered beans and oysters for sale. The 
captain would not allow any of the Indians on board his 
vessel, though he was glad enough to get the oysters in 
exchange for glass beads. 

The Indians had never seen any white men before, and 
thought the Great Spirit had come. Crowds of canoes soon 
put out to see this great canoe with white wings, that moved 



THE ENGLISH COLONIES 79 

without rowing, but Hudson would not let them come too 
near him. 

The Indians were very numerous, for the land was rich 
and beautiful. On the island lived the Manhattans, and up 
the river lived the Sing Sings. On one side of the river lived 
the Hackensacks, and down the bay were the Raritans. 
Hudson was afraid of all these strange and warlike tribes, and 
proceeded up the river with great caution. 

Hudson visited an Indian village on Manhattan Island. 
After talking awhile he drank the chief's health in a glass of 
brand}^, and then offered a drink to the chief. The Indians 
The old warrior smelled it and handed it around. ^^ *^® brandy 
All the Indians shook their heads and refused to drink, except 
one who Hfted the glass to his lips and swallowed the brandy 
with many a wry grimace. 

In a short while he began to stagger, then to whoop and 
yell, and finally he fell unconscious to the ground. His 
companions thought he was dead, but Hudson and his men 
soon had him all right. The Indian declared it was the 
strongest water he had ever tasted, but that it made 
him feel he was in the happy hunting grounds, with plenty 
of game on all sides, and the scalps of many enemies in 
his belt. 

After that all the Indians took a drink. Later on the 
white man^s "fire water" became a deadly enemy to the 
Indians, and many a dreadful massacre could be traced to 
its evil influence upon the race. 

The Half Moon sailed up the river as far as the present 
city of Albany. Here it became evident to Hudson that 



80 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

there was no chance of reaching China by this route. Accord- 
ingly, he sailed down the river and returned to Holland. 

When Hudson reported to the Dutch Company what ex- 
plorations he had made, they at once claimed all the 

Explores the ^^^^ ^^ ^^^^ ^^^^^ ^^ ^^^ Hudson River. 
Hudson Colonists were sent over to establish posts for 

River, 1609 trading with the Indians. The savages were 
eager to exchange valuable furs for cheap trinkets, glass 
beads, pocketknives, and brass jewelry. 



■ 






I 


W - ' f% 




1 


W" m^^S^^^^M 


M 


w 


W ^^^^Wffl 


m 


tti 


MtLL. "^ ^^ '..^-J^^BBilPw 


r^i^ 


:-aHP 






m 




^& 



Henry Hudson explores the Hudson River 

Hudson sailed no more under the Dutch flag. He went 
back to London, entered the service of the London Corn- 
Last days of pany, and started out again to find a northwest 
Hudson passage to India and China. He discovered 

Hudson Bay, which also was named for him. Here he 
was obliged to spend a dreaiy winter, with his ship frozen hard 
and fast in the ice, and his crew nearly dead for want of food. 



THE ENGLLSH COLONIES 



81 



When spring came, his men 
rebelled, seized him and a few of 
his faithful companions, put them 
in a small boat, and set them 
adrift among the icebergs of the 
northern seas. 

A trading post was estab- 
hshed on the lower end of 
NewAmster- Manhattan Island, 
dam, 1614 jhis Settlement was 
named New Amsterdam, after 
the city of Amsterdam in Hol- 
land. It was on the site of the 
present city of New York. The 
Indians were persuaded to sell 
the entke island to the Dutch 
for a lot of cheap trinkets, 
worth about twenty-four dol- 
lars. The entire region claimed 
by the Dutch was called New 
Netherland. 

The thrifty Dutch soon 
started a prosperous trade with 
the Indians. They Uved peace- 
ably with them, buying their 
lands for almost nothing, and 
trading gaudy jewelry for costly 
furs. The settlements increased 

in number, and New Amsterdam grew into importance as a 
colom^ as well as a trading post. 




Settlement of New Yoek 



82 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

12. NEW AMSTERDAM BECOMES NEW YORK 

The Dutch were in possession of the Hudson River settle- 
ments, and for forty years their governors were in charge of 
the httle colony at the mouth of the river. The colony 
was called New Amsterdam. Here came traders from 
Holland, bringing supplies to the merchants and offering 
traffic with the Indians. Slowly the town increased in 
numbers, while the thrifty Dutch traded with the natives 
and attended to their own affairs. 

Governors were sent over to take care of New Amsterdam. 
The most noted of these was Peter Stuyvesant, who had been 
Peter a fine soldier in his time, and had lost a leg 

stuyvesant fighting in the West Indies. It was replaced 
with a wooden leg, of which he was so proud that he had a 
silver band put around it. For this reason the people 
called him ''Old Silver Leg." He would sometimes 
tap his wooden leg with his cane and say, ^'I value 
this wooden leg more than all my other limbs put 
together.'' 

Stuyvesant was a brave and good governor. He would 
not allow the merchants to sell whiskey to the Indians. He 
compelled everybody to go to church, and estabhshed 
schools for the children. He was very high-tempered, 
obstinate, and could be cross at times. If the people did 
not act to suit him he berated them soundly and punished 
them severely. He would storm up and down the village 
streets and abuse the merchants if they charged too much 
and scold the housewives if they were not attending to their 
duties. 



THE ENGLISH COLONIES 



83 








He made his own laws and saw 
that they were carried out . He had a 
Council of nine men, chosen by him- 
seK, to govern the colony, but since 
they were sleepy and self-satisfied 
old merchants, all they did was to 
smoke their pipes and let the gover- 
nor have his way. But it 
was a very good way, and 
even if Stuyvesant was cross 
at times, he w^as a good and 
well-beloved governor under 
whose rule the colony pros- 
pered and the people were 
content. 

The Dutch lived very comforta- 
bly in New Amsterdam. They 
built windmills for grinding com, 
and breweries for making beer. 
They had queerly shaped houses, 
with odd-looking gables. In front 
were little stoops or porches on 



84 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

which the stolid Dutch merchants sat in the evenings and 
smoked their long pipes. Inside the houses were huge 
fireplaces, where great logs of wood burned in the winter 
time. The floors were scoured as clean as soap and sand 
could make them. 

The Dutch were a peaceable people. They planted their 
gardens, pastured their cows, indulged in their sports, and 
Dutch life in desired to be let alone in their new homes. 
NewAmster- They introduced into America the custom of 

^^ celebrating Christmas by the giving of presents, 

and of paying calls on New Year's Day, to wish one's 
friends a happy and prosperous year. Many of the names 
of the old Dutch families are proudly borne by their de- 
scendants. 

The English had by no means given up their claim to 
the land on which the Dutch had settled. Cabot had 
The English explored all the territory which the Dutch had 
demand the named New Netherland, and the Enghsh still 

em ory considered it as their own. For many years 

they paid no attention to the quiet Dutch at New Amster- 
dam. At last, when fifty years had passed and the Dutch 
colony had become of some importance, England decided to 
demand the territory from them. Accordingly, one day 
some English ships sailed into the harbor of New Amster- 
dam. The commander of the ships wrote a demand to the 
Dutch to surrender the town to the English. 

The burghers read the summons with dismay. The 
English commander told them they could dwell peaceably 
under the English flag, otherwise their town would be 



THE ENGLISH COLONIES 85 

destroyed and they would be sent away. Now it made little 
difference to the peace-loving Dutch under whose flag they 
lived, so that they were let alone, but with Peter Stuyvesant, 
the governor, it was another matter. When he read the 
summons he stormed and raged and tore up the paper and 
swore he would defend the colony all by himself if need be. 

The burgomaster called a meeting of the people, and a 
resolution was passed agreeing to surrender the town. A 
copy of it was sent to Stuyvesant, but he used The rage of 
it to light his pipe, and returned in great anger stuyvesant 
to his own home. The Dutch decided to surrender anyhow. 
The treaty was brought to Stuyvesant to sign. He threw 
away the pen and tore up the paper, and locked his house 
so that no one could get to him. The next day another 
treaty was brought to him and thrust in his window on 
the end of a pole. After three hours persuasion the irate 
and obstinate old governor signed the paper and tossed 
it out of the window. 

The British soldiers then entered and took possession of 
the town. All the Dutch territory was given by the King of 
England to his brother, the Duke of York. The name of 
the territory and of the town was changed to New York. 
New York has grown to be one of the great cities of the 
world. 

Peter Stuyvesant did not leave the colony. He retired to 
his farm on Manhattan Island, called the Bowery, where he 
lived to the ripe old age of eighty years. 



86 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

13. LORD BALTIMORE AND THE COLONY OF MARYLAND 

Among the religious sects that were persecuted in England 
were the Roman Catholics. Members of this sect had no 
religious or pohtical rights in England. No Catholic could 
hold office or take any part in the government. Often they 
were treated harshly, were compelled to pay heavy fines, 
were thrown into jails, and were driven from place to place. 
Naturally they desired to find a place where they could 
worship undisturbed. 

Among the Catholics in England was George Calvert. 
He was a friend of the king, and had been granted the title 
George of Lord Baltimore. Lord Baltimore desired to 

Calvert found a colony in America for his persecuted 

brethren. He visited the colony in Virginia, looking for a 
suitable place, but was told there that he would have to 
take an oath acknowledging the King of England to be the 
head of the church. ''I cannot take that oath," said he. 
'^I am a loyal subject of the King of England, but I acknowl- 
edge the Pope only to be the head of the church." After 
this declaration Lord Baltimore had to retire from Virginia. 

He went back to England and persuaded King Charles I 

to grant him a tract of land north of the Potomac River 

for a Catholic colony. The king made the grant 

Maryland . t\ /r i i • i 

and named the territory Maryland, m honor 
of his queen, Henrietta Maria, who was a good CathoHc. 
Lord Baltimore died soon after, and his plans were carried 
on by his son, Cecil Calvert, the second Lord Baltimore. 

The charter of the colony contained very liberal provisions. 
Lord Baltimore was the proprietor of the land, with 



THE ENGLISH COLONIES 



87 



little or no dependence upon the king. He and the colonists 
were allowed to make whatever laws they chose. All reli- 
gions were to be tolerated, Protestant as well as Roman 
CathoHc. In token of his allegiance, Lord Baltimore was 
required to send each year to the king two Indian arrow- 
heads and a fifth part of any gold or silver he might find 
in his territory. 

Cecil Calvert decided to send his brother, Leonard, with 
the colonists. Two vessels, the 
Dove and the Arh, brought over 
two hundred colonists among 
whom were a number of Protest- 
ants. The colonists landed 
near the mouth of the Potomac 
River and founded the town 
of St. Mary's. This was twenty- 
seven years after Jamestown 
was settled. 

The Indians were very friendly 
and welcomed the colonists. 
Land was bought for clothes, 
hatchets, mirrors, jewelry, and other articles that 
attracted the Indians' fancy. The Indians showed 
the men how to plant corn. The squaws taught the 
women how to make ''pone" and ''hominy." At the first 
harvest the colonists sent a shipload of corn to New 
England in exchange for a cargo of codfish. Slaves 
were purchased, tobacco was planted, and the colony 
prospered. There was no starving time in Maryland, and 




JAMCSTOWN 



Settlement in Maryland 



88 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

no trouble from the Indians, as had been the case in some 
of the other colonies. 

St. Mary's continued to be the capital of Maryland for a 
long time. After a while the capital was moved to Annapohs, 
Baltimore, and St. Mary's went into decay. After the 
^^^^ lapse of nearly a hundred years the great city 

of Baltimore was begun and named for the noble founder of 
the colony of Maryland. 



THE ENGLISH COLONIES 



89 



14. WILLL/^M PENN AND THE COLONY OF PENNSYLVANIA. 

Another religious sect in England that suffered persecu- 
tion was the Society of Friends, or Quakers, as they are 
commonly called. They lived a very simple Customs of 
life, dressing in the plainest clothes, and *^® Quakers 
living on the simplest fare. They 
addressed every man by his given 
name, and said, ''thou" and 
"thee" instead of ''you." They 
did not beUeve in war, or in 
going to law to settle their diffi- 
culties. They kept their hats on 
in church, and would not re- 
move them in the presence of 
even a king. The Quakers were 
not allowed to hold meetings 
within five miles of any town, 

were hooted at on the streets, and many were thrown into 
filthy prisons. 

Among the Quakers was William Penn, a young man of 
distinguished family. His father was an admiral in the 
navy, and a friend of the king. Penn's father 
was mortified at his son's becoming a Quaker, 
and was so angry that he drove him from home. The 
young Penn became a Quaker preacher, and wrote books 
in defence of their customs. When the old admiral saw 
that his son could not be changed from his purpose he 
allowed him to return home. 




William Penn 



WilHam Penn 



90 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

When Admiral Penn died, his son William inherited 
his fortune. The king owed the estate a large smn of 
Pennsylvania inoney which he could not readily pay. William 
granted and Penn proposed to the king that he settle the 
°^™^ debt by making a grant of land in America in 

payment. Upon this land Penn intended to found a 
colony for the persecuted Quakers. The king agreed to 
this, and after making the grant he named the territory 
Pennsylvania, or Penn's Woodland, in honor of the admiral, 
William Penn's father. The king had granted to William 
Penn a territory covering 40,000 square miles, thereby 
making him one of the largest landowners in the world. 

The story is told that upon one occasion Penn went to 
pay his respects to the king, Charles II. When Penn 
William Penn entered the room he found the king standing 
and Charles II ^^^ ]^jg ]^^i ^^^ ^^g ^^^g ^j^g custom, surrounded 

by his courtiers who were uncovered. They were vying 
with one another as to who could most flatter the king, and 
do him the greatest honor. 

Penn came forward with his hat on. Instantly the king 
removed his own hat and bowed very low with much defer- 
ence. "Why dost thou remove thy hat?" asked Penn of 
the king. ''Because it is the custom of this court for only 
one man to remain covered,'' explained King Charles. 

Before leaving for his grant in America, Penn called to 
say farewell to the king. The king jokingly told him that 
he would never see him again, since, in all probabihty, the 
savages would kill him. ''I shall be friends with the sav- 
ages," repUed Penn, ''and as I intend to pay them for their 



THE ENGLISH COLONIES 



91 



lands they will not disturb me." The king was astonished, 
and asked Penn why he intended to buy lands that were the 
king^s by right of dis- 
covery. ^ ^Discovery !'^ 
said Penn, ^'Suppose a 
canoe full of savages 
had landed in England, 
would they own the 
realm by right of dis- 
covery?" To this the 
king made no reply. 

Three shiploads of 
colonists were sent over 
Philadelphia to America 
founded, 1683 ^^ once. Penn himself soon followed with an- 
other shipload. Sailing up the Delaware River he came to a 
place which he chose for the site of a town. He named it 
Philadelphia, which means brotherly love. Colonists poured 
into this new town so rapidly that in four years it was larger 
than New York. 




Settlement in Pennsylvania 



92 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

15. PENN'S TREATY WITH THE DELAWARES 

A FEW months after landing Penn called the chiefs of the 
Delaware Indians together in order to form a treaty of 
Penn meets peace and friendship with them. The meet- 
theDeia- ing occurred on the banks of the Delaware 
wares River, under a great ehn tree. The Indians 




William Penn makes a treaty with the Indians 

sat on the ground in a half circle, while Penn and his Quaker 
friends, who had come to the meeting unarmed, addressed 
them. He called them friends and brothers, and compared 
the red men and the white men to different parts of the 
human body, all dependent upon each other, and each 
dependent upon all . 



THE ENGLISH COLONIES 93 

The red men were deeply impressed by his words, and 
promised to live in peace with the Quakers as long as the sun 
and the moon gave light. This treaty was Penn's 
faithfully kept by both parties. The Indians treaty, June 
learned to love the Quakers, until it is said that ' 
the Quaker dress was a better protection from the Indians 
than a gun, and that when an Indian wished to express 
his admiration for a white man he would say, ''He is like 
William Penn." 

The great elm under which the treaty was made remained 
standing for a hundred and twenty-seven years, when it was 
blowm down in a storm. The city of Philadelphia has grown 
up around the place, and a monument marks the spot where 
the great treaty was made. 

Penn always bought the lands from the Indians. He 
never took any territory by force. Upon one occasion he 
bargained for a tract of land extending as far from the Dela- 
ware as a man could walk in three days. Penn and a few 
friends, accompanied by the Indians, walked thirty miles in 
a day and a half. The rest of the journey was left to be com- 
pleted later. Long after Penn's death, the whites employed a 
famous hunter to finish the walk. He covered sixty miles 
in the remaining day and a half, greatly to the chagrin of 
the Indians. 

The boundary line between Pennsylvania and Maryland 
was a matter of dispute for many years. It was finally 
agreed to leave the matter to two surveyors Mason and 
named Mason and Dixon, who ran a line Dixon's line, 
between the two colonies. This line became 



94 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

known as Mason and Dixon's line. At every mile a stone 
was set in the ground; on the north side the letter "P" 
was carved, and on the south side the letter "B" was 
carved. One letter stood for Perm and the other for 
Baltimore. This boundary line in after years became 
famous as the dividing line between the slave states in the 
South and the free states in the North. 



THE ENGLISH COLONIES 



95 



16. THE CAROLINA COLONIES 

Betu^een the Spanish settlements in Florida and the 
English settlements in Virginia there was a large territory, 
much of which was dis- 
puted ground. The 
Spaniards claimed it as 
a part of Florida; the 
English claimed it as 
a part of Virginia. We 
shall see that the Eng- 
lish paid no attention 
to the claims of the 
Spanish. 

A few Virginians had 
ventured to make settle- 
ments along Albemarle 
Sound, and emigrants 
from New England and 
elsewhere had formed a 
colony at the mouth of 
Cape Fear River. 

After the northern col- 
onies were settled and 




Settlements in the Far South 



flourishing, and when Virginia was about fifty years old, 
Charles II, King of England, granted all the Carolina 
territory between Virginia and Florida to eight granted, 1663 
of his friends. The territory had already been named Carolina 
and this name was retained in the grant. The settlements 
along Albemarle Sound were organized into the Albemarle 



96 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

Colony. This colony was the beginning of the state of North 
Carolina. 

The settlements at the mouth of the Cape Fear River 
became known as the Clarendon Colony. In a few years a 
body of emigrants from England sailed up the Ashley 
River and founded a settlement which they named Charles- 
town in honor of the king. This last settlement became 
the city of Charleston and was the beginning of the state 
of South Carohna. 

Colonists came rapidly into Carolina. From Virginia 
came settlers looking for homes and adventures. From 
Growth of New England came colonists seeking a mild 
the colony climate, a fertile soil, and freedom from the 
severe laws of the Puritans. A large body of French 
Protestants, escaping from political and rehgious persecu- 
tion, came to find homes in Carolina. There were colonists 
also from the West Indies, England, and Scotland. 

The proprietors asked John Locke, a famous philosopher, 
to draw up a plan of government for the colony of Carohna. 
The Grand Locke made an unwise plan, by which lords and 
Model nobles were to control the land and make the 

laws. The common people were to have no voice in the 
government. The plan was known as the Grand Model. 
For twenty years the proprietors tried to work this plan 
but the people were so much opposed to it that it was 
abandoned. 

The people of Carolina soon found profitable occupation 
in the rich pine forests that yielded lumber, tar, pitch, and 
turpentine. Tobacco grew abundantly in the northern. 



THE ENGLISH COLONIES 97 

colony, and became a source of wealth to the people. A ship 
from Madagascar brought a bag of rice to Charleston. The 
grains were planted and the result was a great Tobacco, rice, 
success. The rich, swampy lands on the coast and slavery 
were well suited to the cultivation of rice and it rapidly grew 
into importance as a crop. To cultivate the tobacco and rice, 
slaves were brought into the colony. So profitable was 
their labor that the great planters of the Carolinas had large 
numbers of negro slaves on their plantations in South 
Carohna. At one time the slaves quite outnumbered the 
white people. 

After many years the proprietors surrendered their 
rights to the King of England, and Carolina was divided 
into two royal provinces, North Carohna and South Caro- 
lina. 



98 



FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 



17. JAMES OGLETHORPE AND THE COLONY 
OF GEORGIA 

Many years ago it was the custom in England to imprison 
persons for debt. If a man was unfortunate and owed 
money which he was unable to pay, his creditor had the 
right to put him in prison until the debt was in some way 
paid. In this way there were many unhappy persons in the 
jails of England who suffered great hardship on account of 
their misfortunes. 

James Oglethorpe was an Eng- 
lish soldier and statesman who be- 
came deeply interested James Ogie- 
in the condition of ^^^^^ 
these unhappy debtors. Revisited 
the jails and heard their stories and 
resolved to do something to aid 
them. Knowing there was plenty 
of land in America, he petitioned 
the king, George II, for a grant of 
territory between South Carolina 
and Florida in which he could found a colony for the poor 
people of England. The grant was readily made, and the 
territory was named Georgia in honor of the king. 

Many persons wished to join the colony. Oglethorpe 
received no debtor without the consent of his creditor; 
The colonists no criminals or wicked persons were accepted, 
of Georgia ^^^ j^q person was admitted who would leave 
others dependent upon him for support. Oglethorpe 
collected thirty-five famihes, containing one hundred and 
thirty persons, and sailed with them to Georgia. 




James Oglethorpe 



THE ENGLISH COLONIES 



99 



The colonists landed first at Charleston, where they 
were entertained by the people of that place. Oglethorpe 
took a few friends and went in an Indian canoe savannah 
to find a site for his colony. He rowed up the funded, 
Savannah River to a bluff eighteen miles from 
the mouth, and landed. Here he found a village of Yama- 
craw Indians and a trading post. Oglethorpe and the 




Map of the original territory of Georgia 

Indians became friends, and after a short while he brought 
the colonists to their new homes. The settlement was 
named Savannah. 

Oglethorpe treated the Indians with great kindness. 
One of them said: ''We love him because he has given us 
everything we wish. He has given me the coat off his 
back and the blanket from under him." One day an Indian 
strolled into the village and some one asked liim if he was 



100 



FIRST LESSONvS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 



not afraid. To this he repHed, ''I was never afraid among 
my enemies; why should I fear when with my friends?" 

The colony of Georgia was open to the oppressed of all 
nations. • Scarcely had Savannah been laid out when foity 
Other Jews joined the colony. A few months after- 

colonists in wards a ship arrived bringing a band of Salz- 
burghers, who had been driven out of Germany 



Georgia 




The persecuted of all lands were welcomed to Georgia 



on account of their religion. They were given a home on 
the river, twenty-five miles above Savannah. Later on, 
Swiss, Moravians, and Scotch Highlanders were given 
grants of land along the coast. In this way Georgia was 
settled and soon became a flourishing colony. 



THE ENGLISH COLONIES 101 

18. THE SPANISH INVASION OF GEORGIA 
The Spaniards in Florida threatened to invade Georgia, 
and to destroy Savannah and the other towns. Oglethorpe 
did not wait for them to carry out their threat Oglethorpe 
but sailed with a body of soldiers to St. Angus- attacks St. 
tine and bombarded the place. For twenty "S^^*"^® 
days his cannon threw shot and shell into the city, until over 
four hundred Spaniards had been killed. Oglethorpe then 
returned with his army to Georgia, having lost only fifty 
men. 

Two years later a Spanish army of five thousand men 
landed on St. Simon's Island, determined to exterminate 
the colony there. Oglethorpe had scarcely a _ 

/ , ^^ , . / Bloody Marsh 

thousand men to oppose them. He laid an 
ambush for the Spaniards, into which they marched. 
A deadly fire was poured upon the unsuspecting enemy, 
who fled into the woods leaving nearly three hundred dead. 
The locality was afterwards called Bloody Marsh. 

One of Oglethorpe's men had deserted and gone into the 
Spanish camp. The general knew that the deserter would 
inform the Spanish of the small size of his army, and there- 
upon resolved to defeat his purpose, if possible. Accord- 
ingly, he wrote to the deserter a note, telHng him to be sure 
to inform the Spaniards that his army was small, and to keep 
them on the island for a few days longer so that he could 
attack them. 

He gave the letter to a Spanish prisoner, and set him 
free, asking him to dehver it to the deserter. Of course 
the letter was a decoy letter, and, as Oglethorpe expected, 



102 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

was carried by the prisoner to the Spanish headquarters. 
It produced great alarm in the Spanish camp. The com- 
End of the mander thought that the deserter had deceived 
Spanish inva- him, and that Oglethorpe l:iad an immense force 
and would swoop down on him and capture or 
kill his whole army. Therefore, in great haste the Spaniards 
packed up and sailed away, leaving Oglethorpe in possession of 
the island. This ended the Spanish invasion of Georgia, and 
Spain made no further claim to the territory of Georgia. 
The question of the Spanish claim to any part of Georgia 
territory was settled forever. 

Oglethorpe Hved in Georgia for over ten years. He then 
returned to England, where he spent the remainder of his 
life in comfort, dying at the advanced age of ninety-six. 
He was one of the noblest men connected with the early 
history of our country. 

Thus we see that the English colonies were firmly estab- 
lished along the Atlantic coast from New England to 
Georgia, and that the Spaniards were confined to the terri- 
tory of Florida. We shall see further on in our story how 
both the French and the Spaniards finally gave up all the 
territory they owned in America. 



THE ENGLISH COLONIES 103 

19. THE ORIGINAL THIRTEEN COLONIES 

We have learned how different nations founded colonies in 
America. We have seen that the Spaniards settled in 
Florida, the French in Canada, and that the Enghsh colonies 
extended all the way between them from Maine to Georgia. 

These early colonies were composed of small towns scat- 
tered along the sea coasts and rivers, while the great interior 
of America was as yet a wild and unknown country. It 
was many years before the white men knew about the rivers, 
foi'ests, and plains that lay between the two oceans. 

The first foothold the English had in America was in 
Virginia. All other efforts failed until Jamestown was 
settled in 1607. Virginia was the first of the The original 
original thirteen colonies, and was settled by thirteen 
Englishmen seeking homes, wealth, freedom, 
and adventure in the great new country of which all the 
world was talking at the time. 

Then in 1620 came the Pilgrims to Massachusetts. After 
the Pilgrims came the Puritans, who were very much like 
them. From this beginning, all the New England colonies 
developed by the spreading out of settlements in many 
directions. New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Connecticut 
became colonies in this way, as later on did the States 
farther along the northern coast. 

Then the Dutch came to New York, but were not allowed 
to stay there, for the Enghsh in New England would not 
permit other nations to have colonies in their neighborhood. 
The territory of New Jersey became a colony by grants to 
two Enghsh noblemen and by the absorption of Swedish 



104 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

settlers who had come there to Hve. Maryland was started 
as a colony for the Roman Catholics under the good Lord 
Baltimore. 

Pennsylvania became the home of the Quakers in 1681, 
under the leadership of William Penn, who afterwards added 
to his colony the territory now called the State of Delaware. 

North Carolina and South CaroHna were settled next by 
EngHshmen, though for a long time they were but one State 
and called Carolina. Finally Georgia, the last of the original 
thirteen States, was settled by Oglethorpe, who brought over 
a body of poor people who could not pay their debts in 
England, 

The names of the thirteen original colonies are: New 
Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New 
York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, 
Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia. 

It was clear that most of the English colonies in America 
were composed of people who were seeking to escape the 
severe laws of the Old World, and who wanted a land of 
freedom and opportunity in which to live in their own way. 
The Puritans in New England, the Cathohcs in Maryland, 
the Quakers in Pennsylvania, the Huguenots in South Caro- 
lina, the imprisoned debtors and the Germans in Georgia, 
all came to America to obtain freedom. 

Naturally we find these colonies at the very beginning 
having laws that gave men freedom in every possible way. 
A land of A man might here belong to any church he 
freedom chose, and worship God in any way that pleased 

him. In England there were two hundred crimes for which 



THE ENGLISH COLONIES 105 

a man might be put to death; in Pennsylvania there was 
only one, that of murder. In England a man's oldest son 
inherited all the property; in nearly all the colonies the 
children inherited ahke. In all the colonies there was a 
practice that a man should enjoy the benefit of his own 
labors, and should pay as small a tax to the government as 
was possible to support it. 

America, then, became a land of liberty-loving and Uberty- 
seeking people, who would rather come to wild and for- 
bidding shores, and brave the dangers of the seas and the 
terror of savages, the possibility of starvation, the cold of 
the winter, and the discomfort of a new country", than live 
under laws that were oppressive and unjust. 

With this beginning, America has grown to be a country 
of free institutions, where one may be free in America, 
his rehgion, free in his speech, free in his choice the land of 
of work, free to come and go and do as he ^^ ^ 
pleases, so long as he does not break any of the laws that 
were made to protect him and his neighbors. 

A great writer said that ^^Atnerica is another name for 
opportimity," and so the first settlers found it. America, 
So shall we today find it if only we look around the land of 
us, and enjoy the freedom our forefathers sought °^^^ 
and gained, and, like them, are brave, industrious, and 
upright citizens. 

QUESTIONS 

1. Tell the story of Raleigh and Queen Elizabeth. For whom is 
Virginia named and wh}^? What can you sa}^ of the potato and the 
tobacco that the colonists found in America? Where was Raleigh's 



106 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

colony founded? Who was Virginia Dare? What happened to 
Governor White? What did he find on his return to Roanoke? 
What is this colony called? 

2. What were the names of the two English companies that 
were formed to plant colonies in Virginia? Describe the settlement 
of Jamestown. Describe the colonists. What can you say of 
Captain John Smith? Tell some of his adventures. What did he 
make the colonists do? 

3. Who was Pocahontas? How was John Smith captured by 
the Indians? How was he treated by the savages? How did he 
amuse the savages? Relate the story of the note that he wrote to 
his friends. What preparations were made for Smith's death? 
How was his life saved? Whom did Pocahontas marry? 

4. How did New England get its name? Tell about the ''Starv- 
ing Time." How were the colonists saved? What can you say of 
raising tobacco? When and how was slavery introduced in 
America? How were wives secured for the Jamestown colonists? 

5. Who were the Cavaliers and how did they live? What can 
you say of Sir WiUiam Berkeley? Why was he friendly to the 
Indians? Who was Nathaniel Bacon? What did he do? How 
did Berkeley act? AVliat happened to Jamestown? What became 
of Berkeley? What became of Jamestown? 

6. Who were the Puritans? Where had they hved? What 
name did they receive? What was the name of the ship that 
brought them to America? When and where did the Pilgrims 
land? Describe Miles Standish. Relate some of the adventures of 
Miles Standish. 

7. Tell the story of Samoset and Squanto. ^Vhat did Squanto 
teach the Pilgrims? How was Massasoit's life saved? Tell the 
story of Bradford and Canonicus. Describe the first Thanksgiving. 
By whom was Boston settled? Describe John Winthrop. How 
did he manage the colonists? 

8. Who was Roger Williams? What were some of the Puritan 
doctrines he preached against? What did the Puritans declare 



THE ENGLISH COLONIES 107 

and what did they decide to do? What did WilHams do? How was 
Providence founded? Who was Mrs. Anne Hutchinson and what 
towns did she and her followers found? Who was Thomas Hooker? 
What town did he and his followers found? 

9. How did the English generally treat the Indians? What did 
they learn from the Indians? How did they protect themselves? 
Who was John Eliot? Describe his preaching to the Indians. 

10. Who were Alexander and Philip? What happened to 
Alexander? ^Vhat can you say of King Philip? What was King 
Philip's War? What was the fate of King PhiUp? 

11. What Englishman explored the Hudson River? How did 
the Indians receive Hudson? Tell the story of the Indian that 
drank brandy. Why did the Dutch claim both sides of the Hudson 
River? Tell the story of the last days of Hudson. What settle- 
ments were made on the lower part of Manhattan? 

12. Who was Peter Stuyvesant? What was his character? 
How did he control his colonists? How did the Dutch hve in New 
Amsterdam? Why did the English demand the Dutch territory? 
What demand was made by the English? How did Stuyvesant 
treat the demand? What new name was given to New Amster- 
dam? 

13. How were the Catholics treated in England at this time? 
Who was George Calvert? How did Maryland get its name? By 
whom was Maryland settled? How were the colonists treated 
by the Indians? When was Baltimore settled? 

14. What were some of the customs of the Quakers? How were 
they treated in New England? Who was William Penn? What 
did WiUiam Penn propose to the king? For whom was Pennsyl- 
vania named? Tell the story of WilUam Penn and Charles II. 
When was Philadelphia founded? 

15. Describe the treaty between Penn and the Delawares. 
How did the Indians regard Penn? How did Penn always treat 
the Indians? How was the boundary Hne between Maryland and 



108 FIR8T LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

Pennsylvania settled? What Is that line called? For what did it 
afterwards become famous? 

16. What two nations claimed the territory between Florida 
and Virginia? What grant did Charles II make? Of what colony 
was this the beginning? What settlement was the beginning of 
the State of South Carolina? What colonists came into this 
territory? What is known as the Grand Model? What industries 
were profitable? 

17. What can you say of debtors' prisons? Who was James 
Oglethorpe? For what did he petition the king? When and where 
was Savannah founded? What did the Indians think of Ogle- 
thorpe? What other colonists came to Georgia? 

18. What did the Spaniards in Florida threaten to do? What 
city did Oglethorpe attack? Tell the story of Bloody Marsh. 
Tell the story of the decoy letter. Give an account of the last 
days of Oglethorpe. 

19. Where were the Spanish, French, and English colonies in 
America located? Which was the first of the original thirteen? 
By whom was Massachusetts settled? By whom was New York 
settled? By whom was Maryland settled? By whom was Penn- 
sylvania settled? Give the names of the thirteen original colonies. 
Why is America called the Land of Freedom? 



CHAPTER III 
HOW THE FRENCH LOST AMERICA 



1. MARQUETTE EXPLORES THE MISSISSIPPI 

While the English were making settlements in America, 
the French were by no means idle. Settlements had been 
made in Canada along the St. Lawrence River -phe French 
and as far as the Great Lakes. AH the north- settlements 
ern part of America by this time was claimed ^° caims 
by the French, and Quebec had grown to be an important 
colony. The French outposts were far apart, extending 
along the Ohio, Wisconsin, and Illinois rivers, until the 
lands they claimed by exploration completely surrounded 
the lands claimed by the Enghsh. 

The wild, half -savage life of the frontier was very attrac- 
tive to young Frenchmen. They hked nothing better than 
to dive into the deep woods, or get into hght canoes and go 
far beyond the Umits of civihzation, Hving with the Indians 
until they became almost as wild as the Indians themselves. 

Often these adventurous woodrangers married Indian 
women, and their children grew up half civiUzed, half savage. 
Sometimes these rangers stayed away from the French 
settlements for years, but wherever they went, and whatever 
they saw, they claimed it all for France. 

109 



110 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

The woodrangers, fur traders, and French pioneers had 
but httle desire to subdue the wilderness, to cut down the 
The French forests, make farms, lay out roads, and bring 
explorers ^]^g comf orts of civilized life to the wilderness of 

the savage. They liked the roving Hf e too well, and buying 
furs was much easier than raising corn. 

The French villages were mere trading posts, to be used 
a while and then abandoned, while the rangers wandered 
through the woods, or plied their canoes on the rivers, buy- 
ing rich furs for cheap trinkets, and going to Montreal or 
Quebec every year to sell what they had gathered, hoping, 
when they were rich enough, to go back to France. Wliile 
the EngHsh were trying seriously to build up a new nation 
in America, the French were bent on trade with the savages 
or on their conversion to Christianity. 

Among the French priests was Father Marquette. He 
and other priests built Catholic mission houses along the 
Great Lakes. These were little chapels made of bark, 
surmounted by a cross, and containing an altar. Here 
the good priests preached to the dusky warriors in the 
Indian language, trying to convert them from their savage 
ways. The Indians were friendly to the priests, but did not 
take kindly to the religion of peace and good-will. 

The Indians told Marquette about a great river many 
miles to the west. No one could tell him into what waters 
Marquette it flowed. One day a Canadian trader, JoHet, 
and JoHet came to the mission where Marquette was, and 
together they made plans to find out whether the river flowed 
into the Gulf of Mexico or into the Pacific Ocean. They 



HOW THE FRENCH L08T AMERICA 



111 



the Missis 
sippi, 1673 



did not know they were to 
explore the great river which 
De Soto had discovered, and 
which we call the Mississippi. 
Early in the spring, 
Marquette and Joliet started 
Exploring ^^ their voyage. 

They had two 
canoes and five 
boatmen. The weather was 
beautiful. They glided down 
the Wisconsin River until 
they came to the muddy 
waters of the Mississippi. 
On the broad bosom of this 
mighty stream for many days 
and weeks their frail canoes 
continued their voyage. 
Their course was southward. 
Sometimes they paddled 
under the shadows of great 
trees, then by the side of 
open prairies, then under 
overhanging bluffs. Every 
now and then the party would 
land to cook a hasty meal, 
but they generally slept in 
the canoes for fear of prowl- 
ing savages and wild beasts. 




Explorers on the Mississippi 



112 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

One day they saw footprints on the shore. Marquette 
and JoUet followed the tracks until they came to an Indian 
village, whose inhabitants were astonished to see the white 
men. The Indians were friendly, and gave them plenty of 
food and buffalo skins. The Indians urged the white men 
not to go farther down the river, telhng them of demons 
which guarded the passage. 




Marquette and Joliet on the Mississippi 

Marquette and JoHet, however, left their newly found 
friends and continued their voyage. They passed the 
mouth of the Missouri and of the Ohio and came to the 
mouth of the Arkansas. At this point the Indians told the 
voyagers of unfriendly tribes farther down, who would not 
let them pass. By this time Marquette and Johet were 
quite sure that the river flowed into the Gulf of Mexico. 
They also feared that if they went farther they might fall 



HOW THE FRENCH LOST AMERICA 113 

into the hands of the Indians or of the Spaniards. Accord- 
ingly, they resolved to return to Canada. 

The return journey was very wearisome. Joliet finally 
reached Canada and told the governor at Quebec of his 
adventures. Father Marquette returned to Death of 
his mission. Nearly two years later the good Marquette 
priest started on a missionary journey along Lake Michigan. 
Worn out by work and hardship, he was so ill that his 
companions had to Uft him into the canoe. One day they 
passed the mouth of a small stream and he begged the 
boatmen to put him ashore. The party landed, and a rude 
hut was built for the dying priest. As he knelt to pray, the 
men walked away a short distance and left hhn alone. 
When they came back Father Marquette was dead. A 
river near the place where he died now bears the name of 
this noble missionary priest. 



114 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

2. THE FRENCH CLAIM LOUISIANA 

Nine years after the voyage of Marquette and Joliet, 
Robert La Salle, a bold French explorer living in Canada, 
started out with a fleet of canoes and a company of French- 
men and Indian guides, to complete the exploration of the 
Mississippi, to claim all the vast territory of the Mississippi 
Valley and the lands drained by the rivers that flowed into 
it in the name of the French king, and to found a great 
empire in the West. 

Early in 1682, he began his voyage down the great river. 
He had a fleet of canoes, and a number of whites and Indians. 
As they journeyed they selected sites for forts, 
reaches the ^^^ gave names to places, thereby hoping to 
mouth of the get possession of the land. After much journey- 
ififiT^^*^^^' ing and many adventures, the explorer came 
to the mouth of the Mississippi River. A short 
distance above the mouth of the river La Salle and his men 
landed. A cross was raised bearing the arms of France. 
La Salle assembled the men around him and proclaimed in 
a loud voice, ^'In the name of Louis the Great, King of 
France, I take possession of this country." He then 
named it Louisiana in honor of Louis XIV. The people 
shouted, ''Long live the King!" Volleys of musketry 
were fired, hymns were chanted, and a leaden plate was buried 
in theearth, upon which was written, ''Louis the Great reigns." 

In this way did France establish a claim to all the terri- 
tory drained by the Mississippi, Missouri, and other tribu- 
tary rivers. It was a vast tract of land, many times larger 
than the possessions of the English in America. 



HOW THE FRENCH LOST AMERICA 



115 



La Salle returned to Canada, and then went to France 
where he told King Louis about his great adventures and 
his claim to all the great territory of the West. Death of 
The king sent La Salle with four vessels to ^^ ^^ ® 
estabhsh a colony at the mouth of the Mississippi. But 
the vessels lost their way and La Salle landed somewhere on 
the coast of Texas. Here his foUow ers grew weary of the 




La Salle at the mouth of the Mississippi 



long marches and conspired to put La Salle to death. One 
of his men shot him from an ambush and his body was 
buried somewhere in the wild regions he was exploring. 

Eleven years passed before the French again ^^^^^.^^ 
undertook to colonize Louisiana. The French 
king placed four ships and two hundred colonists under 
command of IberviUe, a Canadian, who had risen 



116 



FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 



in Louisiana 



to prominence in the naval service of France, with instruc- 
tions to found a colony at the mouth of the Mississippi. 
Iberville sailed across the ocean, through the Gulf of Mexico, 
and proceeding carefully along the coast, determined not to 
miss the mouth of the Mississippi. 

The party entered the harbor of Pensacola, where they 
found a garrison of Spanish soldiers. Later on they came 
Settlements to Mobile Bay. Cautiously proceeding west- 
ward, they came to the low, marshy lands at 
the mouth of the Mississippi 
and turned their boats up 
the broad and muddy 
stream . Several weeks 
were spent in exploring the 
river. Iberville found no 
suitable place on the river 
for a colony. He returned 
to the coast and began a 
settlement on Biloxi Bay. 
Another settlement was 
started in a few years on 
Mobile Bay. 

Eighteen years after Iberville had explored the mouth of 
the Mississippi, Bienville, his younger brother, founded the 
New Orleans, city of New Orleans. Within four years the 
^^^^ town had prospered so greatly that it was 

made the capital of the vast region called Louisiana. 

France had now two important cities in America, one at 
Quebec and one at New Orleans, but between them lay two 




The French in the Ohio Valley 



HOW THE FRENCH LOST AMERICA 117 

thousand miles of wilderness. To protect their claim the 
French, during the next fifty years, built a chain of sixty 
forts all the way from Montreal to New Orleans. Along 
the Ohio valley the French in many places selected trees, 
to which they nailed tin plates bearing the arms of France, 
and at the roots of the trees they buried leaden plates 
inscribed with the statement that the territory belonged to 
France. 

During all this time the Enghsh and French were bitterly 
disputing their claims to American territory. For about 
seventy years there was war between these -^Vars between 
nations on American soil. King WilHam's the French 
War lasted seven years, then after a short peace ^° °^ ^ 
Queen Anne's War broke out and lasted twelve years. A 
long peace of thirty years passed before war broke out 
again ; it was called King George's War. In all these wars 
the Indians played an important part, some being friendly 
and some unfriendly to the English colonies. 

One instance of the heroism of the times is the story of 
Hannah Dustin, the wife of a farmer, who Hved in Haverhill, 
Massachusetts. 

In the absence of her husband, the savages had entered 
the house of Mrs. Dustin, killed her little baby, and taken 
Mrs. Dustin prisoner. With other captives story of 
the party started on a rapid march back to Hannah Dustm 
Canada. In the party was a boy who understood the 
language of the Indians. One night as they sat around the 
fire, he overheard them planning to torture the captives and 
then put them to death. 



118 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

He told this to Mrs. Dustin and she resolved to save 
herself and her friends. One night when the Indians were 
fast asleep, she woke the boy quietly and gave him a toma- 
hawk she had found. Then the two slipped around to the 
place where the Indians were, and one by one hit them all 
in the head, killing every Indian except one boy and a 
woman, who escaped. Mrs. Dustin then scalped the dead 
Indians, after which she and her friends started on their 
way home, nearly a hundred miles through the forest. 

When she reached Haverhill, great was the rejoicing of her 
family and friends. The town paid her fifty pounds for the 
scalps she had brought, and her fame spread so far that 
even the Governor of Maryland sent her a handsome present. 



HOW THE FRENCH LOST AMERICA 119 

3. THE YOUNG GEORGE WASHINGTON 

Before we go any farther with our story of the French 
and Enghsh conflict in America, known as the French and 
Indian War, let us stop long enough to find out a few facts 
about the early life of George Washington, one of the 
greatest of all Americans. 

He was born in Westmoreland County, in Virginia, 
February 22, 1732. His home stood near the Potomac 
River, and was a low, one-story house, such as 
many farmers Uved in at that day. When 
Washington was eleven years old his father died. His 
education fell to the care of his mother, who was one of the 
best mothers a boy ever had, and to whom her son was 
devoted as long as he lived. 

Washington went to school as other boys did, and was a 
leader among his companions in running, leaping, and wres- 
tling. He would form the boys of the school into a mihtary 
company, and drill them as if they were soldiers. Then he 
would divide them into two armies and fight sham battles, 
for every boy at that time expected sooner or later to be a 
soldier and to fight real battles. 

Washington was alw^ays an honorable and truthful boy. 
His mother owned a beautiful but very wild colt, which the 
boy undertook to ride. One morning he went to the pas- 
ture, and, with the help of some boys, caught the colt, put 
a bit into its mouth, and leaped on its back. The colt reared 
and plunged so violently that he broke a blood vessel and 
fell dead. Washington went straight to his mother and 
told her the truth about the accident. His mother was 



120 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

sorry, but proud that her son did not try to conceal anything 
from her. 

When Washington was sixteen years old, he met Lord 
Fairfax, an old bachelor, who owned a large tract of wild 
Young land across the Blue Ridge Mountains that he 

manhood ^^g anxious to have surveyed. Washington had 

learned surveying at school, and so he undertook to lay 
out the lands of Lord Fairfax. For many weeks he marched 
with chain and compass through the woods and across 
the streams, laying down stakes and drawing maps, living 
with the Indians, and learning a great deal about the hard- 
ships and customs of frontier life. 

When he became nineteen years of age he was appointed 
adjutant-general over one of the districts of Virginia, with 
the title of major, and was already known as a young man 
of great military ability, of splendid character, and of per- 
sonal bravery. All his life he had been pure, truthful, and 
manly. 

The French and Enghsh were getting ready for their 
final struggle to settle the question of the control of the 
Mississippi and Ohio valleys. 

France and England both claimed the Ohio valley. The 
French had built forts in this region, an act which alarmed 
Governor Dinwiddie of Virginia. He resolved to order 
them to withdraw from the territory. One day he sent for 
George Washington, and gave him a letter addressed to one 
of the French officers at one of the forts not far from Lake 
Erie. He directed Washington to deUver the note and 
return with an answer. 



HOW THE FRENCH LOST AMERICA 



121 



Washington was then twenty-one years old. George 
He knew a great deal about the Indians and Washington 
the hardships of frontier life. 

Washington saluted the governor, took the note, and 
with a few companions started on his journey through 
the wilderness. Over hiUs and mountains, The^-™^ 
through swamps and across rivers the party 
made their way. The snow was deep and the weather was 




Washington in peril 

cold At last on a bleak December day Washington and his 
companions reached the French fort, ^^o^^^^^'^"^^- 
die's letter was handed to the French commander, who 
treated Washington with much kindness b^* *«ld ^im that 
he was instructed to occupy and hold the fort, and that he 



122 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

had no intention of abandoning the territory. With this 
answer Washington was obhged to be content. 

His return journey was full of adventures. Hoping to 
make better time, he left his horses and started homeward on 
The return foot with a single guide. At one place Wash- 
joumey ington was shot at by an Indian, whom the 

guide would have killed had not Washington interfered. 
In crossing the Allegheny River, Washington was thrown 
from the raft into the icy water. He was a good swimmer 
and regained the raft, but was obliged to spend a bitterly 
cold night on an island in the river. The next morning 
the river was frozen over and the two went on their 
way. 

At last Washington, after an absence of seventy-eight 
days and a journey of twelve hundred miles, reached 
WilHamsburg, the capital of Virginia, and reported the an- 
swer of the French commander to the governor. The 
answer, of course, meant war. Washington's journey had 
made him famous, and in Virginia he was the hero of the 
hour. 

The French built a fort at the junction of the Allegheny 
and Monongahela rivers, on the site of the present city of 
Pittsburgh. They called it Fort Du Quesne. Washington, 
in command of a body of Virginia troops, marched against 
this fort. A short and sharp battle followed, in which ten 
of the enemy were killed, but Washington was not able to 
drive the French from their stronghold. This was the 
battle of Great Meadows. It was the beginning of the 
French and Indian War in America. 





£ 




vT^-v^ h-%-X p. \^ Ju-Vf^:r-=iC3 


£^~^N^ 


■n 


^ \ JJAi^-^ — r-'A^NvM ^ 




H 


■ — r ft \x^v=^/f70 ^ — \/> — i 


'""*• y» 


^ 
^ 




Vc'Xfv 1 


^.--O^^'l^ -^ 




-3; 


'** 




"■il /^^ 


X^ "a J 


pfe 


"^^'f 


O 




U r^ 


f ^ <j f 


/: 


^ 


^ 

vi 








/ / 




•^ V 




.,^.,^__^c:r-ic-^ / 


~-^'~T\^ A ^ \ 


/ 


x<x 


v" ^ 




^ V 


V^' \ /([ / 


r 


^ 




^ 


/ /i /3liW 


M^ / \ ) ) ) 


M 


/ 






//r " A"// \i//'' 


^ 






^o-^fyl/W tf ^ 


O 




•^ \ \ 7^^^^^^~^'x-:^':3=:-' 


y 


/ 




y^~~~ 


1 — 


,-A 


i^ 


\XHr:~~:t^-^ T \ 


)_^ 


r^-n^''^ 




f/""^ 


-j^w^ 


^) / ^ /^^^^^^ 


"^^^Ck 


/ 


^.ci^=;7^oJ /. / ^^^ ' 


-^ — 


■ — -~1.______^ 


^>o~--< / / \ "^^ J / /^'"^ 




5/ 


^^--/O^ — 7^9-^ c 


E * 




/^/r-O---^ J-^-^^w ^ 




/ 


|| / ^ c^:>-f^ , 0^ 


j^SS;;;^ 


/ 



HOW THE FRENCH LOST AMERICA 123 

4. BRADDOCK'S DEFEAT 

About eight months after the events recorded in the 
last lesson, a British general appeared at the office of 
Governor Dinwiddie in WilUamsburg. He wore a bright 
uniform, and had an important, miUtary air. This was 
General Braddock, who had been sent by the British govern- 
ment, with two regiments, to take command of an expedi- 
tion against the French forts in the North and West. 

Braddock set to work to collect wagons, food, and forage, 
and to get his army ready to move. He was a vain and im- 
patient officer. He expressed great contempt Braddock's 
for the plain Virginia soldiers who wore preparations 
hunting clothes and had but little mihtary training, and he 
boasted of what the British soldiers could do. Braddock 
was a good soldier, but he knew nothing about fighting 
Indians in a tangled forest, and his obstinacy afterwards 
brought him to grief. 

After three months' preparation a force of thirteen 
hundred men began their march across the mountains to 
attack Fort Du Quesne. Washington was a Braddock's 
member of Braddock's staff, with the rank °^arch 
of colonel. Axemen were sent on ahead to cut down the 
trees and prepare a road for the wagons and for the troops. 
Their progress was very slow. It was springtime, the 
weather was beautiful, the troops were well fed, and Brad- 
dock was in no hurry. 

Washington warned Braddock of the ways of Indian war- 
fare. He told him to beware of an ambush. Braddock 
boastingly replied, ^ 'These savages may indeed be a formid- 



124 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

able enemy to your raw American militia, but upon the 
king's troops it is impossible for them to make any impres- 
sion.'' 

After nearly three months' marching Braddock came 
within a few miles of Fort Du Quesne. The French officer 
placed his soldiers and the Indians in the woods on either 
side of the road over which the English must march on 
their way to attack the fort. 

Braddock did what Washington had cautioned him not 
to do; he marched straight into an ambush. On both 
Braddock's sides was an unseen but watchful foe. Sud- 
defeat, July denly the hidden enemy opened fire on the 
^' ^ advancing Enghsh, and whole ranks of men 

were slain by the flying bullets. The English regulars were 
in a panic. They did not know how to fight an enemy 
they could not see, and their bullets sank harmlessly into the 
trees or went uselessly into the air. They broke and ran 
in great disorder. 

Braddock rushed into the fight and fell from his horse, 
shot through the lungs. Washington and the Virginia 
Death of militia covered the retreat as best they could. 

Braddock Washington seemed to bear a charmed fife. 
Four bullets pierced his coat and two horses were killed 
under him, but he escaped unhurt. Everything fell into 
the hands of the French, and the English scattered in all 
directions for safety. Four days later Braddock died, 
saying in his last moments, ''We shall know better how to 
deal with them next time." When he was buried Wash- 
ington himself, by the light of a pine torch, read the burial 



HOW THE FRENCH LOST AMERICA 125 

service, and the body of the brave, but fooHsh, general was 
laid away in the wild woods of western Pennsylvania. He 
had requested that his body be protected from the Indians. 
Accordingly he was buried in the middle of the road, and 
the whole army passed over his grave. 

Three years later Fort Du Quesne was captured from the 
French and its name changed to Fort Pitt. When the 
French left Fort Du Quesne Washington himself was present 
and with his own hands placed the Enghsh flag upon the 
ramparts. He then returned to Virginia and was elected a 
member of the House of Burgesses. 

When he came to take his seat, the Speaker of the House 
rose and thanked him for his services. Washington was 
no orator, and when he tried to respond he was so em- 
barrassed that he could not say anything. "Sit down, 
Mr. Washington," said the Speaker. ''Your modesty 
exceeds your valor, and that is beyond the power of language 
to express." 



126 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERTCAN HISTORY 

5. THE CAPTURE OF QTJEBEC 

The city of Quebec is situated mainly on a bluff over- 
looking the St. Lawrence River. It had been the head- 
quarters of the French in America for one hundred and fifty 
years. By this time it was a large and prosperous city, 
strongly fortified and heavily garrisoned. The English 
resolved to capture Quebec and thus end the war. 

Among the bravest of the British officers was James 
Wolfe. He was now thirty-two years of age, and highly 
regarded for his ability and courage. He was 
very gentle in his nature, and had always been 
a devoted and dutiful son. His face was as smooth as that 
of a girl, but behind his soft and tender exterior beat the 
heart of a lion. 

The capture of Quebec was entrusted to Wolfe. He was 
in poor health at the time, and was always made ill by a 
sea voyage.^ His aged father needed his son's presence 
in England, and his sweetheart, to whom he expected 
shortly to be married, urged him to stay at home. But 
Wolfe said that if his country needed his services he was 
ready to go. 

Wolfe arrived before Quebec with his fleet of vessels. 
Three hundred and more feet above the river frowned the 
Siege of great precipice, on the top of which lay the better 

Quebec part of the city. There was the French com- 

mander, the Marquis de Montcalm, with a strong army ready 
to defend the citadel. When Wolfe saw the task before 
him he was indeed discouraged. However, he set about a 
regular siege of Quebec, bombarding that portion of the city 



HOW THE FRENCH LOST AMERICA 127 

that lay along the river bank, and engaging the troops of 
Montcalm whenever he had an opportunity. 

For two months and more the siege lasted. Wolfe 
was ill most of the time and very despondent. At length 
he hit upon a desperate plan that would be a great success 
or a great disaster; he resolved to scale the precipice with 
his troops and drive Montcalm from his citadel. 

One dark night the boats were lowered, filled with soldiers, 
and noiselessly rowed to the shore. Wolfe was in the fore- 
most boat. The men landed and silently began scaling the 
to climb the precipice. Montcalm had said that Precipice 
the English could never reach the citadel by that route 
unless they had wings, and, consequently, had not guarded 
the approach. When near the top the English were discov- 
ered by a sentinel, who gave the alarm. 

Montcalm could hardly beheve the report that the 
Enghsh had reached the Plains of Abraham, as the heights 
were called. He hastily mounted his horse and ordered his 
troops into battle. Wolfe was, of course, unmounted. Ill 
though he was, and carrying^ only a cane in his hand, he 
vigorously directed the troops. He ordered them to he down 
so that the fire of the French would pass over their heads. 
When the enemy came within forty yards, the English 
troops rose and poured a deadly volley into their faces. 
That one discharge settled the issue of the battle. 

Montcalm was wounded and was borne from the field. 
Later on, as the Enghsh troops pressed forward, Wolfe 
was shot in the breast. '^Support me," said he to an 
officer near him; ''let not the brave fellows see me drop." 



128 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

He was borne to the rear and in a short while heard the 
soldiers shouting "They run! They run!" ''Who run?" 
Death of ^e asked. "The French," was the answer. 

Wolfe and "God be praised," said the hero; "I die in 
peace." In a few moments he breathed his last. 

Montcalm also lay dying of his wound. When told he 
could not live, he said, "I am glad of it." When told he 
would die in ten or twelve hours he said, "So much the 
better. I shall not live to see the surrender of Quebec." 

Quebec surrendered, and the power of the French in 
America was broken forever. By a treaty with England 
Surrender of they gave up Canada, and all their possessions 
Quebec, 1759 g^^g^ ^f ^^ie Mississippi. England came into 
control of the larger portion of North America. Hence- 
forward, we were to be an English and not a French nation. 



HOW THE FRENCH LOvST AMERICA 129 

6. LIFE IN THE COLONIES 

A HUNDRED and fifty years had passed since the settle- 
ment of Jamestown. EngUsh colonies had been estab- 
lished along the Atlantic coast all the way from New 
Hampshire to Georgia. They had a population of about a 
million and a half. The French had surrendered Canada 
and the region east of the Mississippi to the English. The 
Spaniards owned Florida and the regions beyond the 
Mississippi River. 

There were a few large cities, such as Boston, New York, 
Philadelphia, land Charleston, but for the most part the 
villages were small and had all the appearance of pioneer 
settlements. 

The early colonists in America had few comforts, much 
hardship, and but little pleasure. Sometimes on landing 
there was no better shelter than the caves in the hillsides. 
It t.ook a strong will and a sturdy body to withstand the 
trials and exposures of the first settlers. 

The first houses were cabins made of logs notched at the 
ends, with the cracks filled with mud to keep out the cold. 
Instead of window glass the colonists used oiled The first 
paper ; in place of wooden floors the ground was houses 
packed hard and covered with sand; in place of lamps or 
candles, the great fireplace furnished light as well as heat. 

Around these cabins in winter often the snow drifted, 
and the wolves howled. In the villages and in the frontier 
cabins there was always danger of Indian massacres. The 
colonist worked with his gun by his side and slept with it 
by his bed, not knowing when the war whoop of the savages 



130 



FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 



would summon him to protect his wife and children from 
massacre, and his cabin from destruction. He depended 
The settler upon his rifle to supply game for food, to furnish 
and his nfle gkins for clothing, to protect his family from 
the savages, and to defend his home from a foreign 
enemy. The frontiersmen of America were the best marks- 
men in the world. At a distance of a hundred yards a 




A BLOCKHOUSE FOR DEFENCE AGAINST INDIANS 



mark of the size of a silver dollar was as large a target as 
they needed. 

The early pioneer had to battle with a heartless wilderness. 
Life with him was hard and stern. He had no time or 
Sport of the inclination for amusement. Therefore, he 
colonists severely condemned such follies as dancing, 

playing cards, wearing fine clothes, and going to the theatre; 
they were sinful and wasteful pleasures. If he desired 
sport he found it in shooting at a mark, in hunting wolves 



HOW THE FRENCH LOST AMERICA 131 

and bears, in fights between wild beasts and his dogs, in 
wrestUng, and in all kinds of hardy games. 

Gradually, however, as the settlements grew into towns 
and the towns grew into cities, better houses were built and 
more comforts were added. Furniture and utensils were 
brought over from England, glass was used for windows, 
the houses were painted, and some comforts of civilization 
began to appear. 

In Virginia and other Southern colonies the large planters 
often built stately mansions, with great halls, wide ve- 
randahs, and tall columns. There were many Life in 
slaves to work the fields, the climate was mild, Virginia 
and the people were hospitable. Life became very easy 
and comfortable for the great landowners of the plantations 
in the Southern colonies. 

Most of the supphes of the colonists came from England. 
Ships brought in shoes, clothing, tools, and furniture, and 
returned loaded with tobacco, furs, lumber, dried fish, whale 
oil, molasses, and other things the new world industries of 
afforded. Therefore, there were not many *^® colonists 
factories in America, for the people devoted themselves 
mainly to fishing, farming, and trading with the Indians. 
In New England the main industry was fishing and ship- 
building. In New York the fur trade along the Great 
Lakes and the Canadian borders was most profitable. In 
Pennsylvania the people raised wheat and other grains; 
the Southern colonies supplied tobacco, corn, and sugar. 



132 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

7. CUSTOMS IN THE COLONIES 

Sunday was strictly observed in all the colonies. Any 
diversion or work on Sunday was punished by a fine or by 
Observance imprisonment. It was forbidden to fish, shoot, 
of Sunday q^[\ ^ boat, or do any kind of work. Horses 
were to be used only for going to church and not then if it 
was possible for the family to walk. There was little or no 
cooking allowed on Sunday, so everybody ate cold food 
on that day. Nor was any one allowed to use tobacco in or 
near any meetinghouse. The Sabbath began at sunset on 
Saturday, and ended at sunset on Sunday. 

Everybody was compelled to go to church. The church 
was usually cold and uncomfortable in winter, the sermons 
were always long, sometimes lasting two or 
three hours. Often a single prayer lasted one 
hour while everybody knelt on the cold floor. Nobody 
dared to sleep, for the tithingman was on guard to rap the 
men on their heads with a rabbit's foot on one end of his 
stick, or tickle the women's noses with a rabbit's tail on 
the other end of his stick, if they nodded for a moment. 

The colonists believed in punishment. If a man stayed 
away from church, or wore fine clothes that he could not 
afford, or chewed tobacco near the meeting- 
house, or went hunting or fishing on Sunday, 
or told a lie, or drank too much whiskey, he was brought 
before the magistrate and punished. If a woman was a 
common scold, she was ducked in the water. If a man was 
a drunkard, he was compelled to wear a big ''D," made of 
red cloth, sewed to his coat. 



HOW THE FRENCH LOST AMERICA 



133 



The pillory and stocks were set up in the village green, 
or in some other public place. Offenders were Pillory and 
made to stand in the pillory or to sit in the ^^^^^^ 
stocks, so that passers-by could see them and make sport 
of them. 




Charged with being a witch 



If a person was condemned to be hanged, the execution 
was in pubHc, and was made a great occasion. People came 
from miles around to witness the scene, and preachers 
made long speeches warning the people against sin. 



134 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

Among the curious superstitions of New England was 
the belief in witches. We know that there are no such 
BeUefin things as witches, but in those days people 
witches thought that Satan and the evil spirits entered 

into men and women and led them to do many wicked 
things. If the cattle died, if there was a drought, if any- 
body fell down in a fit, or if anything unusual or dreadful 
happened, people said a witch did it, and began to accuse 
some one of witchcraft. The belief in witchcraft became 
worse in Salem, Massachusetts, than anywhere else. 

Some children who claimed to have fits when certain 
persons came near them, charged these persons with being 
Punishing witches. They even described the witches' 
the witches sacrament, and said that one of the witches 
had asked them to sign the devil's book. These fooUsh 
stories were believed by the people. Then one person 
began to accuse another. The madness spread and every- 
body seemed in danger of being called a witch. Many 
were thrown into prison ; nineteen were hanged, and one 
aged man, who refused to open his mouth in his own defence, 
was cruelly pressed to death between two stones. The 
people at last came to their senses, the prison doors were 
opened, and reason resumed its sway. 



HOW THE FRENCH LOST AMERICA 



135 



8. DISCOMFORTS IN COLONIAL DAYS 

In colonial times people suffered much discomfort. 
There were no stoves, and cooking was done in fireplaces. 
There were no knives and forks except for the wealthy, 
and ordinary folks ate with their fingers; there were no 
china dishes, and everybody, except those who could afford 
pewter, ate from wooden bowls or trenchers. Such things 
as kerosene oil, coal, and matches were quite unknown. 
Steamships, railroads, electric cars, telegraphs, and tele- 
phones, so famiUar and necessary to us, had not been 
dreamed of. 



.pnTfifitimiliFiB 




In old stagecoach days 

Traveling in those days was avoided as much as possible. 
If one had to make a journey he went on horseback, if 
possible, and generally along with other trav- Traveling 
elers for protection. After a while the stage- 
coach began to ply between the large towns, passing through 
the villages. Traveling was slow and wearying. A stage- 
coach took three days to go from New York to Philadelphia, 
a journey now made in less than two hours. 



136 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

The stagecoach was without springs and cushions, the 
horses usually were overworked, the roads were full of 
A journey by ruts, and often so muddy as to be almost 
stagecoach impassable. The coach generally started at 
three o'clock in the morning, no matter how cold the 
weather. The horses were changed at intervals. The 
traveler was jolted along for eighteen hours until he was 
put down at an inn, where he was offered very bad food 
and a very hard bed. Before daybreak the next morning 
he was off again, and so on for a week, at the end of which 
time a traveler from Boston found himself in New York, 
more dead than aUve. 

If a wealthy man was compelled to travel he went in his 
own coach, attended by his own servants, and was given 
HospitaUty entertainment by hospitable people who lived 
to travelers along the road. In Virginia, where the inns 
were so bad that one could hardly endure them, and the 
homes of the planters were large enough to hold many 
guests, it was the custom to station a servant at the gate 
of a great country mansion, and all travelers were invited 
to stop and spend the night. 

There was but Uttle mail in those days. All the letters 
for the entire country delivered during a whole year were 
MaU and not equal to the letters of New York city now 

postage deUvered in one day. The mail was carried by 

post riders, who set out at irregular times on their journey 
by the bridle paths and trails through the forest when there 
was enough mail to pay for the expense of deUvery. Some 
places received mail but once a month. There were no 



HOW THE FRENCH LOST AMERICA 



137 



postage stamps, but letters were paid for according to 
length. There were not forty newspapers printed in all 
the colonies at this time, and these were small sheets con- 
taining little news. 

There were not many pubUc 
schools in colonial days such as we 
Schools and have now. Most of the 
colleges schools were private 

schools supported by the church. 
In the large cities there were a 
few good schools. In Massachusetts 
there was a law requiring every 
community of fifty or more famihes 
to support a free school. Harvard 
College in Cambridge, Massachu- 
setts, and Wilham and Mary 
College in Virginia were among the earhest of the colleges 
to be founded in America. In the Southern colonies the rich 
planters had private tutors for their famihes or sent their 
children to England to be educated. For the great mass of 
the people everywhere the schools were very badly equipped, 
the term was short, and books very hard to get. 




An old hand printing ^ 

PRESS 



138 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

9. SERVANTS AND SLAVES 

Laborers were greatly needed by the colonists in early 
times. There was an unlimited demand for servants, for 
workmen of all kinds, and for hands to cultivate 
the fields. The demand far exceeded the sup- 
ply. To meet this need a great many poor white girls and 
boys, and even men and women, were brought over from 
England, their employers paying their passage over, and 
allowing them to pay it back by their labors after their 
arrival. 

Even criminals were sent over and sold into service to the 
farmers and small manufacturers, but this practice was not 
Criminals and popular, since criminals were as dangerous in 
vagabonds ^j^g p^j.^ Qf ^j^g world as in another. It also 
happened that gangs of kidnappers seized men and even 
children in the alleys and along the wharves in London and 
other English towns and hurried them on board ships to be 
sold into service in America. Probably as many as ten 
thousand vagabonds and criminals were thus sent into the 
colonies. 

But the need for a large and reliable laboring class had 
to be met, and Africa was the easiest country from which 
to get it. 

We have already seen that in the year 1619, a Dutch 
ship brought a load of negroes to Jamestown and sold 
them to the planters in that colony. It was not long 
before slavery found its way into all the colonies, and negro 
slaves were found in Boston, New York, and Philadelphia, as 
well as in Charleston and Savannah. 



HOW THE FRENCH LOST AMERICA 139 

In those days it was not considered wrong to hold negroes 
in slavery. There were many who believed that the condi- 
tion of the negro was improved by bringing The slave 
him from the darkness of Africa and putting ^^^^^ 
him into civilized and Christian communities. Therefore 
the slave trade flourished. 

Slave ships from New England carried cargoes of fish 
and other things to European ports, then sailed along the 
African coasts and bought negroes who had ^, 

^ ® Slave ships 

been captured in the wars among the tnbes, 
and returned to America with their unhappy prisoners. 
Many died on the voyage, and their bodies were thrown into 
the sea. 

When a slave ship arrived in port and it was announced 
that a cargo of negroes was for sale, the slave dealers gath- 
ered by the ship's side or in the slave market The slave 
of the town. The owners sold the negroes by ^^^^^^ 
auction or at private sale to the dealer, who, in turn, sold 
them to the farmers for field hands, or to people of the town 
for house servants. 

The negroes were generally quiet and good-natured. 
They went to their work cheerfully, soon learned the 
Enghsh language, and adopted the dress and customs of 
their masters. Certainly they fared better in America than 
they did in Africa, except that they were slaves, and for 
that they did not seem to care. Slavery in 

In New England the negroes were mainly ^^^ England 
used for house servants. The chmate, however, was too 
severe for them. They did not thrive in a region of snow 



140 



FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 



and ice, to which they were not accustomed. In the 
Southern colonies, where the chmate was more hke that of 
Africa, and where agriculture was the main occupation of 
the people, the negroes thrived well. 




Old-time slave quarters 

The Southern planters bought the negroes from the slave 
traders, gave them comfortable homes in the slave quarters. 
Slavery in and put them to work in the tobacco fields and 
the South ^]^g Y^^Q swamps. In this way a great slave sys- 
tem grew up in the South under circumstances which 
seemed fortunate and right at the time, and to which no 



HOW THE FRENCH LOST AMERICA 141 

one raised any objection. The negroes were generally 
well treated, were happy in their new homes, became devoted 
to their masters, and were satisfied with the condition that 
fate had awarded them. 

QUESTIONS 

1. What can you say of the French outposts in America? 
What can you say of the French woodrangers? Describe the 
French frontier villages. Upon what did the French seem bent? 
What had Father Marquette and other priests done? What had 
they heard? Describe the voyage of Marquette and Joliet. What 
river did they explore? 

2. What was the purpose of Robert La Salle? What did La 
Salle do when he reached the mouth of the Mississippi? ^ What 
claim was established by his exploration? Describe the death of 
La Salle. Describe the explorations of Iberville. What were the 
first settlements in Louisiana? When was New Orleans founded? 
How did the French protect their claims? What wars ensued 
between the EngUsh and the French? Describe the heroism of 
Hannah Dustin. 

3. When and where was George Washington born? Describe 
his early life. Give some incidents illustrating his character. 
What service did he perform for Lord Fairfax? What did Governor 
Dinwiddle direct Washington to do? Describe Washington at the 
time. Describe the journey and the delivery of the message to the 
French. Describe the return journey. Where did the French 
build a fort and what did they call it? Describe the battle of 
Great Meadows. 

4. Describe General Braddock. What preparations did he 
make for his campaign? What kind of officer was Braddock? 
Describe Braddock's march. Of what was he warned and what 
did he reply? Describe Braddock's defeat and his death. What 



142 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

name did Fort Du Quesne afterwards receive? How did Washing- 
ton show his modesty? 

5. Describe the city of Quebec. What can you say of James 
Wolfe? What was the name of the French commander? Describe 
the scahng of the precipice. Describe the death of Wolfe and of 
Montcalm. What was the result of the surrender of Quebec? 

6. Describe the condition of the colonies at this time. Describe 
the hardships of the colonists. Upon what did they depend 
largely? What were the sports of the colonists? What follies were 
severely condemned? What improvements were gradually made? 
Describe life in Virginia. What were some of the industries of the 
colonists? 

7. What was forbidden on Sunday in colonial times? When did 
Sunday begin and when did it end? Describe church service. 
What were some of the punishments in colonial times? Describe 
the pillory and the stocks. Describe public hangings. What can 
you say of the belief in witches? How were witches punished? 

8. What were some of the discomforts of colonial times? How 
did people travel? Describe a journey by stagecoach. What 
hospitality was shown to travelers? What can you say of mail? 
How was mail carried? What can you say of schools in colonial 
times? What colleges were among the first to be founded in 
America? 

9. How was the demand met for laborers in America? What 
can you say of the importation of criminals and vagabonds? To 
what extent did slavery spread in America? Describe the slave 
trade. Describe slave ships and slave dealers. What can you say 
of the negroes themselves? Why was New England unsuited for 
slavery? Why did a great slave system grow up in the South? 



CHAPTER IV 
HEROES OF THE REVOLUTION 



1. PATRICK HENRY 

The king of England seemed to care very little for 
the American colonies, except in the way of trade. The 
colonists were not allowed to trade with any _ ^ ^ 

Trade laws 

merchants except Enghsh merchants. They 
were not allowed to manufacture cloth or hats, or to make 
anything out of iron, but were required to send the wool, 
fur, and iron to England to be manufactured there. Goods 
had to be carried in English vessels manned by English 
sailors. They had to pay heavy duties on sugar, molasses, 
and other things which they needed. 

The French and Indian War had cost a great deal of 
money. The British government declared the war had 
been fought largely in defence of the colonies 

1 , . 1 . Taxation 

m America, and that they must pay their 
share of the expense. The colonists would not have 
objected had they been consulted as to the raising and the 
amount of taxes, but they did object to being taxed without 
having a word to say about it. This was ^'taxation without 
representation,'^ and was httle short of tyranny. 

The British Parliament passed the Stamp Act, which 
required all bonds, deeds, Hcenses, and contracts to be 

143 



144 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

written on stamped paper. This paper was stamped in 
England, brought to America, and the colonists were 
The stamp required to buy it. It cost from one cent to 
Act, 1765 ££^y dollars a sheet, according to its use. The 
Stamp Act caused great indignation in America. The 
colonists refused to buy the stamped paper and declared 
King George to be a tyrant. 

The great mass of the English people had nothing to do 
with the making or carrying out of these unjust laws. Only 
The obstinacy ^ small portion of the people were allowed to 
of the English vote, with the result that Parliament was com- 
^°^ posed largely of the king's friends, as blind and 

obstinate as the king, George III, himself. The body of the 
people had much the same mind about oppressive laws 
as did the colonists, and many of them sympathized in 
secret with their kindred over the seas. 

The greatest and wisest men in Parliament, such as Burke, 
Fox, Barre, and Pitt, stoutly denied the justice or wisdom of 
the acts of Parliament. Pitt exclaimed, ^^I rejoice that 
America has resisted." But George III would have his 
way, and the result was a war by which he lost his most 
valuable colonies in the new world. 

Among the great orators in America of that time was 
Patrick Henry, of Virginia. He was employed as counsel in 
Patrick the case of the clergymen who were suing the 

Henry Virginians for their salaries. The dispute arose 

about the value of tobacco in which the salaries were paid, 
and Henry was employed to represent the people against 
the clergymen. It was known as the ^Tarsons' Case." 



HEROES OF THE REVOLUTION 



145 



On the day that Henry spoke, the courthouse was 
crowded. Henry's father was one of the judges. It was 
Henry's first speech, and his beginning was oration in 
timid and awkward; but gaining in self-pos- the Parsons' 
session he made such an eloquent plea that the 
jury aw^arded the clergymen just one penny for damages. 

Henry became a member 
of the House of Burgesses 
of Virginia. News came 
that the Stamp Act had 
been passed . Henry listened 
to the speeches of others, 
but he thought they were 
too timid to express what 
the occasion demanded. 

Reaching for an old law 
book, he tore out a blank 

Speech against P^ge, wrote a 

the Stamp resolution on 

^""^ it, had it read 

to the members, and then 

began to speak. It was 

one of the great speeches of 

the Revolution, and the members Hstened spellbound by 

his fearless eloquence. He concluded his speech by saying: 

"Caesar had his Brutus, Charles I his Cromwell, and 

George III . . ." 

At this point several members cried out "Treason! 
Treason !" Henry was not afraid, but turning towards them 




Patrick Henry addressing the 
Burgesses 



146 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

said, ^'George III may profit by their example!'' Henry 
expressed the feehngs of all the colonists. 

Seeing the determination of the people, the British 
government repealed the Stamp Act, and quiet was restored 
for a while in America. 



HEROES OF THE REVOLUTION 147 

2. SAMUEL ADAMS 

The king's troops were in Boston trying to overawe the 
people. They paxaded the streets by day, and with their 
drunken shouts and brawhng disturbed the quiet of the 
night. On Sunday they raced horses on the Common, 
and sang rude songs before the church door. They insulted 
the people and often came to blows with the citizens, who 
made sport of them, calling them "redcoats,^' and other 
names. 

One night a body of citizens had a quarrel with some 
soldiers on the streets of Boston. From angry words they 
came to blows. Some one rang the church bell, ^^ ^ ^ 

° ' The Boston 

and a crowd rushed into the moonlit streets. Massacre, 
They pressed upon the file of soldiers, who ^^^^^ ^y 
unexpectedly fired their guns, killing several 
of the citizens, and wounding others. This is known as the 
Boston Massacre. 

Samuel Adams, then fifty-eight years of age, who is 
known as ''The Father of the Revolution," was a leading 
citizen of Boston. He had written much about the tyranny 
of the king and the oppression of the British laws, and had 
urged the people everywhere firmly to resist all oppressive 
measures. A great meeting of the citizens of Boston was 
held the day after the massacre. They resolved that the 
British soldiers must leave Boston. Adams took their 
message to the governor. 

CalUng upon the governor, Adams made the demand. 
"I will remove one regiment,'' replied the governor. Where- 
upon Adams, pointing his finger at him, said, "The voice 



148 



FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 



of ten thousand freemen must be respected, and their 
demands obeyed. If you have power to remove one regi- 
Adams and ment, you have power to remove the other. Sir, 
the governor ^^ jg j^^^j^ regiments or none." The governor, 
in alarm for his own safety, ordered the troops to leave 
Boston immediately. 

The British Parliament laid a tax on tea, glass, paper, and 
a few other things. The colonists resisted all these taxes, 

and refused to buy any of the 
articles taxed. The ships carrying 
tea lay idle in the harbors. Nobody 
would drink tea so long as it was 
taxed. 

Several tea ships lay in the 
harbor of Boston. The citizens 
would not allow the tea to be landed, 
and the ships could not depart. 
The customhouse officers were on 
the point of seizing the tea and 
Samuel Adams storing it in the town. Seven 

thousand people gathered in and about the Old South 
Meeting House, and Adams presided over the meeting. 
He had hoped for news that the ships would sail away, but 
no such news comings he arose and said quietly, "This 
meeting can do nothing more to save the country. '^ 

Hardly had he finished, when shouts were heard in the 
streets. A body of citizens dressed as Indians were on their 
way to the ships to "see how tea would mix with salt 
water. '^ Adams probably knew about it beforehand and 




HEROES OF THE REVOLUTION 149 

had helped to devise this plan of destroying the tea. 
The crowd followed the disguised citizens, the ships were 
boarded, the tea was thrown into the water, and -,^ ^ , 

' ^ The Boston 

the people quietly dispersed to their homes. Tea Party, 
This is known as the Boston Tea Party. December 

Samuel Adams became a member of the Con- 
tinental Congress at Philadelphia, and was received with great 
honor wherever he went. He lived to see the independence 
of the American colonies and the formation of the American 
Union. In his old age he was elected governor of Massachu- 
setts a few years before his death. 



150 



FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 



3. THE MINUTEMEN AT LEXINGTON 

The British troops 



were again in Boston, 
and General Gage was i 
in military command. 
Gage had orders to arrest 
John Hancock and Sam- 
uel Adams, and send 
them to England for 
trial. Upon hearing 
that they were in Lex- 




Paul Revere' s ride 




Old North 
Church 



ington, visiting a friend, he resolved to cap- 
ture them there, as well as to destroy the 
arms and provisions which the patriots 
had collected at Concord, a few miles 
beyond Lexington. 

One night a force of eight hundred 
troops marched out of Boston on their way 
to Lexington. The purpose Paul 
of Gage, however, had been R^vere's nde 
discovered. Across the Charles River 
Paul Revere, his horse by his side, waited 
for the signal that the troops had started. 
The signal was a lantern to be himg 
in the belfry of the North Church; one 
lantern if the troops went by land, two if 
they went by sea. The signal appeared, 
and Revere dashed off in the darkness 
ahead of the troops. As he flew along he 



HEROES OF THE REVOLUTION 



151 




cr 



ilMiiM 



ied out to the 
iople/The British 
e coming' The 
5h are coming!'' 
hearing this the 
farmers arose and armed 
themselves. They were already organ- 
ized as minutemen, which means they 
were ready at a min- 
ute's notice to arm 
themselves and go into 
battle. 

Reaching Lexington, 
Revere came to the 
house where 
Hancock 
and Adams 
were sleep- 
ing. The 



152 



FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 



house was guarded, and the sergeant told Revere not to 
make so much noise. ^'Noise!" cried Revere, '^there will 
be noise enough before long; the regulars are coming!" 
Hancock recognized Revere^s voice, and from an upper 
window asked what was the matter. Upon being informed, 
he and Adams dressed quickly and escaped. 




The Lexington Tablet 

By sunrise the troops reached Lexington. Fifty mounted 
men were drawn up on the village green under command 
of Captain John Parker. Parker had said to his men, 
''Stand your ground; don't fire unless fired upon; but if they 
mean to have a war, let it begin here." 

Major Pitcairn, the British officer, rode forward and 
shouted, "Disperse, ye villains!" But the patriots stood 
The minute- firni. Pitcairn gave orders to fire, but his 
men at Lex- troops hesitated. Pitcairn pointed his own 
mgton pistol and fired. His troops then discharged 

their guns and killed eight of the minutemen and wounded 



HEROES OF THE REVOLUTION 153 

ten others. The minutemen retreated and the British 
moved on. Adams and Hancock, who were walking across 
the fields, heard the noise of the guns. Adams remarked, 
"Oh; what a glorious morning is this!" 

At Concord the British found that most of the military 
stores had been removed. They set fire to the courthouse, 
cut down the liberty pole, spiked a few cannon, ^^^ ^ ^ , 
and started back to Boston. The farmers had Lexington, 
gathered from far and near and lined the road. ^^^ ^^' 
On ever^^ tree and behind every rock there 
seemed to lurk a marksman. It was one long ambush. The 
British began to run. By the time they reached Lexington, 
where reenf or cements met them, they were completely 
exhausted and fell on the ground, ''their tongues hanging 
out like dogs after a chase." They continued their flight, 
and three hundred were killed on their way to Boston. 
This was the battle of Lexington, the first battle of the 
Revolution. 

News of the battle aroused the people of all the colonies. 
The patriots of New England assembled an army around 
Boston. Israel Putnam, of Connecticut, while Excitement 
plowing his field, heard of the battle, and leav- foUowingthe 
ing the plow in the furrow mounted the horse ^ ® 
and rode a hundred miles in eighteen hours to join the army. 
The people of Mecklenburg County, North CaroUna, passed 
resolutions declaring that they no longer owed allegiance 
to England. This was the first declaration of proposed inde- 
pendence. 



154 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

4. GENERAL GEORGE WASHINGTON 

The American army needed a commander-in-chief, and 
all eyes turned to George Washington. He was chosen 
without opposition. He was then forty-three 
Washington years old, but was known throughout the 
chosen com- country as a great soldier and a noble man. 
man er-m- jj^ ^^^ ^^jj^ athletic, and hardened by his Ufe 
as a surveyor and by his experience as a soldier. 

Washington was now in the prime of his life. Wherever 
he went he attracted attention by his splendid height and 
His his soldierly bearing. His eyes were light blue 

appearance ^^^^ g^ deeply sunken under his brows that they 
gave him a grave and dignified expression. He was very 
strong, an excellent shot, a good swordsman, and a fine 
rider. A\Tien he was a young man, he excelled in wresthng, 
and in throwing. He was fond of fine clothes and dancing,an d 
liked to go to parties and engage in social gatherings of all kinds. 

He was so modest in his manner that when he was notified 
of his selection as commander-in-chief he declared he did 
not think he was equal to the command of the army. 

He refused to take any pay for his services, but said that 
he would keep an account of his expenses, which the govern- 
ment might pay after the close of the war. 

Before Washington had arrived near Boston the battle 
of Bunker Hill had been fought. The British attacked the 
Battle of Americans as they lay in the trenches. Twice 

BtmkerHiU, they charged the American hues and twice 
June , they were driven back. On the third charge 

the Americans, having no ammunition, met the British 



HEROES OF THE REVOLUTION 



155 



with clubbed muskets and heavy stones. The defence 
was a brave one, but the patriots were compelled to retreat. 
When Washington heard of the way the militia had stood 
the fire of the British, he said, ^The Hberty of the country 
is assured." 

When Washington 
arrived before Boston he 
was received with great 
enthusiasm by the soldiers. 
Under an elm tree, in 
Cambridge, he reviewed 
the troops and took com- 
mand of the army. He 
made a very martial ap- 
pearance as he sat on his 
horse, with a broad band of 
blue silk across his breast, 
and a three-cornered hat 
with the cockade of hberty 
in it. 

The soldiers in W^ashing- copyright ty Undenvood & Underwood, N. Y. 

ton^s army knew very httle ^^^^^^ ^^^^ Monument 

of mihtary disciphne and were poorly provided with arms 
and ammunition. They were hardly more than Drilling the 
a mob of enthusiastic and patriotic farmers, droops 
who were willing to fight, but knew nothing of the rules of 
warfare. For months Washington drilled the troops and 
enforced order. He was on the lines every day, visiting 
every part of the camp and seeing the progress of the work on 



r ' - 


Hi ' 



156 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

the fortifications around Boston. The British inside the 
city were quietly waiting to see what the Americans would 
do. 

When all was ready, Washington placed his cannon on 
the heights so as to command Boston, and sent word to 
the British General Howe, who had succeeded General Gage, 
that he must move out of Boston or be prepared to stand 
an attack. Howe was astonished when he saw the American 
cannon pointing at him from a hill overlooking Boston. 

There was nothing left for him to do but to fight, sur- 
render, or sail away from Boston. He decided to sail 
Th Biiti h ^^^J) ^^^ accordingly put his army aboard his 
leave Boston ships, and went to Halifax, leaving behind 
March 17, more than two hundred cannon and a great 
quantity of powder and muskets, all of which 
fell into the hands of the Americans. Washington marched 
into Boston with his army, and was received with open 
arms by the people of the town. Meetings were held in 
Faneuil Hall, ''The Cradle of Liberty," and patriotic 
resolutions were passed by the people. 

Thus Washington began that great career which has 
endeared him to the hearts of all Americans. He showed 
his genius by organizing an army out of rough, untrained 
miUtia and leading it to the overthrow of the trained soldiers 
of Europe. 



HEROES OF THE REVOLUTION 157 

5. ATTACK ON CHARLESTON— DECLARATION OF 
INDEPENDENCE 

During the siege of Boston a British force had left that 
city to attack Charleston. When the people heard of the 
approach of the enemy they hastily built a Defence of 
fort of palmetto logs on Sullivan's Island and Charleston 
mounted cannon for its defence. Colonel Moultrie was in 
command. There were those who laughed at Moultrie's 
fort and declared that the British guns would knock it 
over in a half hour. ''We shall see/' said Moultrie. "If 
they do, we shall be behind its ruins and keep their men 
from landing." 

When the British fleet arrived and the attack on the fort 

began, it was found that the cannon balls could do but little 

injury. The balls sank into the earth or into portMoul- 

the soft palmetto wood, leaving the fort un- trie, June, 

1 *j*jfi 

harmed. The soldiers of the fort took careful 
aim and did much damage to the British ships. The 
enemy finally gave up the attack and sailed away. A fort 
on Sulhvan's Island has ever since been called Fort Moultrie. 
During the bombardment, the flagstaff of the Sergeant 
fort was broken by a cannon ball and the flag Jasper 
fell outside the fort. Sergeant Jasper leaped down and, 
in the face of the enemy's fire, recovered the fallen flag 
and, tying it to the sponge staff of a cannon, fastened it 
upon the walls of the fort. 

Up to this time the colonists had been fighting for their 
rights as subjects of Great Britain, but now they deter- 
mined to fight for independence. A Continental Con- 



158 



FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 



gress had been meeting in Philadelphia. It was composed of 
delegates from all the colonies. Richard Henry Lee, of 







Copyright by Underwood & Underwood, N. Y. 

Independence Hall, Philadelphia 



Declaration 
of Independ 
ence, July 
4, 1776 

ence. 



Virginia, introduced a resolution that ^'these 
colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and 
independent states." A committee was ap- 
pointed to draw up a Declaration of Independ- 
Phomas Jefferson, of Virginia, then thirty-three 



HEROES OF THE REVOLUTION 



159 



years of age, and one of the youngest of the delegates, was 
chosen to write the great document. 

The debate lasted several days. Finally the Declara- 
tion of Independence was agreed to, adopted by Congress on 
July 4, 1776, and signed by the delegates. 




Signing the Declaration of Independence 



When the Declaration was finally adopted, John Hancock, 
the president, signed his name in a bold hand "so that the 
king could read it without spectacles." Then all the others 
signed it. Franklin remarked, ''We must all hang together 
or we shall all hang separately." 



160 



FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 



Postriders carried the news in haste to all parts of the 
country. The Declaration was read to the soldiers in the 

field. From pulpits and platforms 
it was read to the people. Every- 
where there was rejoicing over the 
great event. Torchlight processions, 
bonfires, speeches, the firing of guns, 
and the ringing of bells gave evidence 
of the joy of the colonists that the 
war in which they were engaged 
was henceforth to be a war for free- 
dom. We can well undei'stand why 
the Declaration of Independence is 
the most important of all our state 
papers, and why the Fourth of 
July is the greatest of all our national holidays. 




John Hancock 



HEROES OF THE REVOLUTION 



161 



6. TRIALS AND TRIUMPHS OF THE PATRIOTS 

The British decided to attack New York City, and get 
control of the Hudson River, so as to cut off New England 
from the rest of the colonies. Washington hastened from 
Boston with his army. His forces were not strong enough, 
however, and the British compelled him to leave New York 
City. Thereupon Washington began a retreat across New 
Jersey. 




Washington crossing the Delaware 



It was now the dead of winter and the weather was very 
cold. The American troops were greatly discouraged, and 
hundreds of them left the army, believing the xhe retreat 
cause to be lost. It was a gloomy hour for across New 
the patriots. Washington reached the Dela- J®^^®^ 
ware River and crossed over at Trenton. The British 
were behind him, but when they arrived at Trenj;on they 



162 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

decided to wait a few days for the river to freeze over. 
They thought Washington was in full flight. 

It was the night of Christmas, and the British troops in 
Trenton were celebrating the occasion with drinking and 
B tti f feasting. Washington put his worn and almost 

Trenton, exhausted men into boats, and in spite of the 

December, floating ice recrossed the Delaware, and marched 
nine miles in the darkness, and in the face of a 
blinding snowstorm, until he reached the camp of the 
British. The British troops, which were hired soldiers from 
Germany and were called Hessians, were taken entirely by 
surprise. 

The commander at Trenton was named Rail. He had 
made his headquarters in the house of Abraham Hunt, a 
The conduct merchant of the place. Rail was very fond of 
of Rail drinking and playing cards. On Christmas 

night he and Hunt were in a warm room, before a big fire 
with plenty to drink before them, and a game of cards in 
progress. 

A servant came in and handed Rail a note. He was so 
interested in the game of cards that he thrust the note in 
his pocket and forgot it. The next time he thought of it 
he was being carried mortally wounded into a tavern near 
by, and Washington had taken a large body of his troops 
as prisoners. When the note was opened it was found to 
contain a warning of the plans of Washington, which was 
sent by a tory and delivered to the servant at Himt's house. 

It was too late to prevent the capture of his 
army. A thousand soldiers surrendered to Washington. 




War Territory in the Eastern and Middle States 



HEROES OF THE REVOLUTION 163 

The Americans had lost only four men, two of whom 

had frozen to death, and two were killed in the battle. 

A few days afterwards the British general, Cornwallis, 

arrived from New York to attack Washington at Trenton. 

He thought he had Washington in a trap, ^ , . 

and went to sleep at night saying, "At last Princeton, 

we have run down the fox, and we will bag Januarys, 

. 1777 

him in the morning. '^ But Washington was 

more of a fox than Cornwallis thought. All night long 

a few men were engaged in building camp fires and making 

a noise as if throwing up breastworks, while the rest of the 

army shpped away to Princeton. When CornwalHs arose 

he could hardly beheve his eyes. There was nothing but 

an empty camp before him. Washington was in Princeton, 

where he gained another great victory over the British. The 

tables were now turned. There were rejoicing and hope 

everywhere, instead of gloom and despair. 

A British army, under the command of General Burgoyne, 
marched down from Canada through New York state. 
An American army had opposed them all the g^n-ender of 
way, burning bridges, cutting down trees across Burgoyne, 
the roads, and doing everything possible to October i7, 
worry the British troops. At Saratoga the two 
armies met in battle and the British surrendered to the Amer- 
icans. It was a great victory. When the king of France 
heard of it he said that the Americans were worthy of free- 
dom, and forthwith acknowledged their independence. 

Among the foreigners who had come over to help the 
Americans was the Marquis de Lafayette. He was only 



164 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

nineteen years old, but was an ardent lover of liberty. At 
a dinner party in Germany he listened to an account 
of the struggles of the American colonists for 
freedom. He was so deeply moved that he 
arose from the table and declared that he would go to 
America and offer his services to Washington. He said, 
"The welfare of America is closely bound up with the wel- 
fare of mankind.'' 

He had inherited a large fortune, and at his own expense 
fitted out a vessel that brought him to America. Congress 
made him a major-general. He became the devoted friend 
of Washington, and served vahantly through the war. Of 
all the foreigners who have served our country no one is so 
tenderly beloved as Lafayette. 

The British had moved against Philadelphia. They 
sailed down Chesapeake Bay, and though Washington 
Valley Forge, met them in the battle of Brandywine, they 
1777-1778 succeeded in capturing the city. Washington 
retired with his army to Valley Forge, where the troops 
spent a winter of dreadful suffering. Many of the men had 
no blankets and were compelled to sit by a scant fire all 
night to keep from freezing. Some died from want of 
clothes, and others perished from lack of food, yet the brave 
soldiers kept up their courage, and there were few deser- 
tions. 

Patriotism of When the British held Philadelphia, the 
Lydia Darrah headquarters of the adjutant-general were in 
the house of a Quaker named Darrah. One night the officer 
said to Mrs. Darrah, whose name was Lydia. '^I will have 



HEROES OF THE REVOLUTION 165 

some friends here tonight, so you may prepare the best room 
for me and them, and then you and the members of your 
family may go to bed at an early hour." 

The room was prepared, and the friends came. The fam- 
ily went to bed, but Lydia rose and stole in her stockingfeet 
to the door of the room and overheard the officers talk- 
ing. She heard them discussing an order from General 
Howe arranging for a secret attack on Washington. That 
was enough for the brave woman. The next morning, on 
the pretense of going to the mill for flour, she trudged 
through the snow for five miles and gave word to Washing- 
ton of his danger. 

The British tried to make the attack, but Washington 
was ready for them, to their great chagrin. When the 
troops marched back in disgust at their failure to surprise 
the Americans, the officer remarked, 'Tt is very strange 
how Washington could have found out our purpose. I 
cannot understand it." Mrs. Darrah could have told 
him, but she did not. This was but one instance of many 
in which the heroism of the women in the cause of liberty 
was shown during the war. 



166 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

7. MARION AND SUMTER 

After a winter spent in Philadelphia the British started 
on their way to New York. Washington followed them 
and gave battle at Monmouth, New Jersey. It would have 
been a victory for Washington if General Charles Lee had 
not disobeyed orders. Instead of attacking the British 
as he was told to do, he retreated. For this disobedience he 
was court-martialed and dismissed from the army. 

It was at the battle of Monmouth that Molly Pitcher 
distinguished herself for bravery. She was busily engaged 
Bravery of Carrying water to the thirsty soldiers. Her 
Molly Pitcher husband was serving one of the cannon, and was 
shot down in her presence. She did not stop to waste time 
in tears, but seizing the ramrod she undertook to serve 
the gun as well as her husband had done. All during the 
battle the brave woman continued to do service at the big 
gun with as much coolness and courage as a man. When 
Washington heard of it he conferred on her the rank of 
lieutenant, and Congress granted her half pay for life. 
She was afterwards known as Captain Molly. 

The British finally reached New York, and Washington 
drew his lines closely around them to prevent their leaving. 
The scene of war was then changed to the Southern colonies. 

The British began by capturing Savannah and Charleston, 
and overrunning Georgia and South Carolina. It was 
hard to get many troops to oppose the British in these 
distant colonies. The patriots were brave, however, and 
offered all the resistance they could. 



HEROES OF THE REVOLUTION 



167 



Francis Marion, of South Carolina, raised a company 
of his neighbors and called them '^Marion's Brigade.'' 
They had no uniforms and no tents, and served Marion's 
without pay. They beat out old saws to make brigade 
swords, and melted pewter mugs and dishes to make bullets. 
They depended upon the fields and gardens of the people 
to supply corn for the horses and potatoes for the men. 
Sometimes the brigade numbered seventy or eighty men, 
then again it numbered only twenty. They made them- 
selves famous, however. 

Marion's men annoyed the British 
by shooting at them from ambush. 
Francis They Captured their horses 

Manon ^j^^j supply wagons, they 
rescued prisoners and broke up the 
British camps. They never came to 
open battle, and if pursued they 
scattered, every man for himself, 
into the swamps and woods to 
come together again at some place 
agreed upon. At one time Marion 
heard that ninety British soldiers, 
with one hundred and fifty prisoners, 
were on their way to Charleston. 

With thirty men he swept down upon them in the darkness, 
captured the whole party, and rescued the prisoners. So 
difficult "was Marion to follow that he became known as 
'The Swamp Fox." 




One of Marion's men 



168 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

Marion was a man of small stature and of few words. 
On looking at him one wondered how he could be so 
great a soldier. He never sullied his fame by an act of 
cruelty. ^ 'Never shall a house be burned by one of my 
people /' he said ; "to distress poor women and children is what 
I detest." When he said that he had in mind many of the 
cruel things that the British soldiers had done in the South. 

Thomas Sumter was another soldier in this wild war- 
fare. Unlike Marion, he was tall and powerful. He 
Thomas became known as 'The Game Cock." The 

Sumter British had burned his house and turned his 

family out of doors. Sumter called his neighbors together 
and organized a band to fight the British wherever he 
could find them. Cornwalhs said, ''But for Sumter and 
Marion, South Carolina would be at peace." Sumter's 
men rode their own horses, wore hunting shirts, and carried 
long rifles with which they could hit a mark the size of a 
man's hand at a distance of two hundred yards. 

This kind of war is known as "guerrilla warfare, "because 
it was carried on by bands of soldiers, each fighting for 
itself and without regular organization into an army. 
The brave troops of Carolina and Georgia did great damage 
to the British, and kept them in check until they were driven 
out of the South. 

Nancy Hart lived in a cabin in Elbert County, Georgia. 
She was a tall, strong, cross-eyed, high-tempered woman 
Bravery of who cordially hated the British. A party of 
Nancy Hart them gave her a visit one day while her husband 
was at work in the field. They ordered her to cook them a 



HEROES OF THE REVOLUTION 169 

breakfast. She soon had the smoking meal before them. 
They stacked their guns in a corner and sat down to eat. 
Nancy edged round to the guns, and, seizing one, pointed 
it at the British, saying, "I will shoot the first man that 
moves." No one could tell from her cross-eyes whom 
she was aiming at, and all sat terrified and trembhng. 

^^Go," said she to one of her children, ^^and tell your 
father 'l have captured six base tories.'^ One of the men 
advanced upon her. She fired, and the man feU dead. 
Seizing another musket, she held the others at bay until 
her husband and several men arrived. The tories were then 
taken out and hanged in front of the cabin, Nancy declaring 
that shooting was too good for them. 



170 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

8. THE END OF THE WAR 

One of the saddest incidents of the Revolutionary War 
was the treason of Benedict Arnold. He had been a good 
soldier, but was disappointed about promotion and had 
fallen into bad habits. He had been reprimanded by 
Washington for his conduct, which made him so angry that 
he decided to turn traitor to his country. 

He requested to be put in comm.and of West Point, an 
important fort on the Hudson River. Washington granted 
the request hoping that Arnold would hence- 
Benedict forth act as a soldier should. But Arnold 

Arnold, sent word to the British in New York that 

1780^™ ^^' ^^ ^^^ ready to surrender the fort for thirty 
thousand dollars and an officer's position in 
the British army. 

Major Andre, a young British officer, was sent to meet 
Arnold and make all arrangements. At the meeting Arnold 
Major gave up important papers and agreed upon 

Andre j^^^q manner of surrendering the fort. Andre 

started back to New York on horseback. At Tarrytown 
he was stopped by three men who asked him where he was 
going. Supposing they were friends he repHed, ^ 'I am a British 
officer on important business. Please do not detain me." 

The three men, however, were patriots, and in spite of 
Andre's attempt to bribe them they carried him into the 
American lines. Here the papers were discovered, and the 
brave young officer was in a few weeks tried, convicted, and 
shot as a spy. Arnold, however, was warned of his own fate 
and escaped into New York. 



HEROES OF THE REVOLUTION 171 

After Arnold reached the British in New York he was 
given a commission as an Enghsh officer. He led a band of 
tories and Hessians in a warfare of destruction Later life of 
in Connnecticutj his native state. At one time ^^^^^ 
he was fearful of capture, and asked an American prisoner, 
''What will the Americans do with me if I fall into their 
hands?" The prisoner replied, ''They would cut off the leg 
that was wounded in the service of your country; the rest of 
you they would hang." 

After the war Arnold went to England to live, but was 
treated with the contempt he deserved. At one tmie he 
was asked to write a letter of introduction to some friends 
in America. To this he rephed, "I was born and reared in 
America, but now I can call no man there my friend." 

It is said that when Arnold was ill and about to die, he 
asked to put on his old American uniform. His epaulets 
and sword were brought to him. He looked at them sadly, 
and said, "With these I fought my battles. May God 
forgive me for ever having worn any others!" 

General Cornwalhs was the British commander in the 
South. He had overrun Georgia and South CaroHna, and 
was pushing his way northward, hoping to make an easy 
conquest of North Carolina. He sent a force of twelve 
hundred men to make a raid into the western part of that 
state. The hardy backwoodsmen began to gather in 
great numbers to oppose the British. 

From across the Alleghenies and from the defiles of the 
mountains they came in hunting shirts, and with sprigs 
of hemlock in their hats, armed with rifles that rarely 



172 



FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 



The battle of 
King's Moun- 
tain, October 
7, 1780 

three sides. 



missed their mark. Three thousand of them gathered and 
faced the British at King's Mountain, on the Une between 
the Carolinas. 

The British were on the top of the mountain with a 
ravine behind them. The British officer, Ferguson, cried 
out, "Boys, here is a place from which the 
rebels cannot drive us!" He spoke too soon. 
The backwoodsmen hitched their horses to 
the trees and charged up the mountain from 
Advancing from tree to tree they took deadly 
aim, and the British fell in great numbers, while the Ameri- 
cans lost but few men. The whole British force surrendered, 
and the backwoodsmen returned to their homes beyond the 
mountains. Cornwallis, though much discouraged by the 
loss of his forces at King's Mountain, pushed on through 
North Carolina and into Virginia, until he finally came to 

Yorktown. 

General Nathanael Greene 
was in command of the 
American forces Nathanael 
m the South. ^^^«^« 
When he took charge of the 
army it was in a forlorn con- 
dition. There was only one 
blanket to every three sol- 
diers, and provision for only 
three days. Once Greene 
spoke to a barefoot sentinel 




Nathanael Greene 



saying, ' 'You must suffer from 




War Territory in the South 



HEROES OF THE REVOLUTION 



173 



cold." ''Yes," said the soldier, not recognizing the general, 
''but I do not complain, for our commander has no suppUes 
for his men." 

Upon another occasion Greene alighted at an inn which 
had been turned into a hospital. Upon being asked how 
he was, he replied, ''Hungry, tired, alone, and penniless." 
The landlady brought him two bags of money she had saved, 
saying, "Take these, you and your men need them and I 
can do without." 

Cornwallis reached Yorktown, and Washington hastened 
from New York to capture him. A French fleet blockaded 
the harbor and the British were trapped syrren^jej- <,£ 
completely. After a brave resistance Corn- Comwallis, 
wallis surrendered to Washington. This 
practically ended the war. A treaty of peace 
was signed between Great 
Britain and the colonies, 
by which the thirteen 
colonies in America were 
acknowledged "free and 
independent." 

By the terms of the 
treaty our boundary lines 
were Florida on the 
South, the Mississippi 
River on the West, and 
Canada on the North. 



October 19, 
1781 




A CANNON OF Revolutionary times 



174 



FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 



9. BENJAMIN FRANKLIN 

One of the most notable men of the time of the Revo- 
lution was Benjamin Franklin. He was born in Boston, 
January 17, 1706. He was the son of a candlemaker, and 
was one of seventeen children. His father was too poor 
to send him to school very long, but the young Frankhn 
studied while he worked at his father's trade. ^Hien a 
young man he went to Philadelphia and became a printer. 

When Franklin arrived in 
Philadelphia looking for work 
as a printer, he had but a few 
coins in his pocket. With these 
he bought a loaf of bread 
and began munch- Franklin in 
ing on it as he was Philadelphia 
walking along the street. A 
pretty girl with laughing eyes 
saw him from one of the win- 
dows as he was passing by. She 
laughed outright at the uncouth 
boy, very much to his chagrin. 
She afterwards became his 
wife. 

For many years he published ^Toor Richard's Almanac," 
full of quaint sayings and homely wisdom. The following 
are some of the maxims of Franklin taken from 'Toor 
Richard's Almanac." 

'^A word to the wise is sufficient." ^'God helps those who 
help themselves." '^Keep thy shop, and thy shop will keep 




Copyright by Underzvood & 
Underwood, N. Y. 

Benjamin Franklin 



HEROES OF THE REVOLUTION 175 

thee." "Constant dropping wears away the stone." "A 
small leak will sink a great ship." "Creditors have better 
memories tlian debtors." "Better go to bed supperless than 
in debt." "A sleeping fox catches no poultry." 

Frankhn had very practical ideas. He persuaded the 
people to put their books together in one common stock for 
a public library. He formed a debating society Practical 
of his friends to discuss scientific subjects. He ^^^^^ 
became interested in electricity. By means of a kite held 
by a silk cord he proved that the clouds were full of 
electricity when there is a storm. He invented the hght- 
ning rod to protect houses against being struck by Ughtning. 

Frankhn suggested that a great deal of heat was wasted 
by chimneys, and devised the open stove, which is still 
called the Franklin stove. He persuaded the people of 
Philadelphia to pave the streets and light them by lamps, 
to have night watchmen, and to form fire companies. 

When Frankhn was forty-five years of age he was made 
deputy postmaster-general for the colonies. He astonished 
the people by proposing to have a regular mail once a week 
between New York and Boston. This was thought to be 
a wonderful achievement. At that time there were about 
seventy post offices in the whole country. Letters that left 
New York on Monday reached Boston on the following 
Saturday. 

At the beginning of the French and Indian War, Frankhn 
had proposed, at the convention of delegates of the colonies 
at Albany, to form a union of the colonies for their mutual 
protection. He presented the plan, and it was approved 



176 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

by the convention. It was not approved^ however, by the 
British government, and was not allowed to go into opera- 
tion. 

Franklin was in England as the agent of the Pennsylvania 
colony when the Stamp Act was passed, and did all he 
Franklin on could to prevent its becoming a law. He 
the stamp was invited to appear before the House of 
^ Commons to discuss the subject. He was 

asked many questions, to which he gave ready and able 
answers. He told the statesmen of England many things 
about the colonies that they did not know before. His 
answers made a great stir. He was asked if the colonies 
would submit to any kind of Stamp Act. He rephed 
boldly, '^No, they will never submit to it!" 

When asked what the people would do about making 
contracts and collecting debts, he said, ''I can only judge 
of them by myself. I have a great many debts due me in 
America, and I would rather they should remain unpaid 
thansubmit to the Stamp Act." He also said, ^'I have some 
property in America. I will freely spend nineteen shillings 
in the pound to defend my right of giving or refusing the 
other shilhng." It was largely by his influence that the 
Stamp Act was repealed. 

After the war began in earnest, FrankHn was sent to 
France to gain the friendship of that nation for the colonies. 
The French people hailed him as the friend of mankind, and 
crowds followed him through the streets, while the shop 
windows displayed his picture for sale. He was admired 
for his simple manners, for his ready wit, and for his plain 



HEROES OF THE REVOLUTION 177 

dress. He wore no wig, had a great cap of fur, used large 
spectacles, and carried a walking stick. 

Franklin soon won the heart of the French people. 
Money w^as raised in France to aid the Americans, and 
French officers offered their services. French Franklin in 
ships were fitted out to fight our battles, France 
and French soldiers enlisted in the American army. 
Franklin induced the king to take sides openly with the 
American colonies, and to acknowledge their freedom and 
independence. 

When the war was over, Franklin was one of the repre- 
sentatives of the American government at Paris in making 
the treaty of peace with England. After the Franklin's 
treaty had been signed, a dinner was given in *°^^^ 
honor of the event. The Enghsh ambassador offered the 
following toast: ''England — the glorious sun at midday, 
that illumines the world." The French minister arose 
and offered his toast: 'Trance — the full moon rising in its 
splendor to drive away the shades of night." All eyes 
turned on Frankhn as he arose and asked the company to 
join him in the toast: "The United States — the Joshua who 
commanded the sun and the moon to stand still, and they 
obeyed him." 

On leaving France he was given the portrait of the king, 
framed in a double circle of four hundred and eight diamonds. 
The king gave him the use of the queen's fitter to bear 
him to the coast. When he reached America he was re- 
ceived with great enthusiasm by the people. 




178 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

10. DANIEL BOONE MOVES INTO KENTUCKY 

Daniel Boone was a hunter who lived in a cabin in 
North Carohna. One day a friend told him of the fine 
hunting grounds in the re- gQQ^g.g 
gion now known as Ken- hunting trip 
tucky. Boone with five into Ken- 
companions started on a 
hunting trip across the mountains. 
The party went on foot, each man 
carrying his pack. For five weeks 
they toiled through the forests until 
they came to the blue-grass region of 
Kentucky. There they found buffa- 
loes, deer, elks, wolves, bears, and panthers. It was a 
hunter's paradise. The other members of the party 
returned to North Carolina, but Boone remained for three 
weeks alone in the great woods with his trusty rifle. 

After Boone went home he decided to move his family 
into Kentucky. Others joined him, making a party of 
Boonesbor- thirty. They started out, cutting a trail 
ough, 1771 through the forest and blazing the trees as 
they went along. In a few months they selected a place 
on the Kentucky River and began a fort, which afterwards 
was named Boonesborough. More settlers followed along 
the trail, the fort was strengthened, and more cabins were 
built. 

The Indians were very unfriendly. The savages who 
had been lurking about captured two girls who were rowing 
on the river, and started off with them. One of them was 



HEROES OF THE REVOLUTION 



179 



Boone^s daughter. The girls tore shreds from their dresses, 
and unobserved by the savages dropped them on the way 
to guide any who might follow. The settlers soon missed 
the girls and following their trail rescued them from the 
savages. 




The Indians capture two young girls 



Upon another occasion Boone was captured by the 
Indians and carried across the Ohio. One of the chiets 
wanted to adopt him as his son, and Boone was Captured by 
obliged to submit. All his hair was plucked the Indians 
out except a scalp lock, he was painted and dressed like an 



180 



FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 



Indian, and lived for several months among the savages. 
They watched him closely, however. The old chief comited 
the bullets and measured the powder he gave to Boone, 
and required him to bring in game for every bullet he used. 
Boone was more cunning than the Indians, for he cut the 
bullets in half, and stinted himself in the use of powder, thus 
saving a store for future use. 




Early pioneer settlement in Kentucky 



At last he heard the Indians plotting to destroy Boones- 
borough. Pretending to go on a hunt, he started on his 
Saves way to Kentucky. A band of warriors pur- 

Boones- sued him, but he easily threw them off the 

borough ^j.^.j ^^^ ^^^^ ^Q ^]^g Ohio. Here he found a 

canoe and rowed across the river. He killed a turkey and 



HEROES OF THE REVOLUTION 181 

ate it, the first thing he had eaten for many hours. In 
five days, traveling one hundred and sixty miles, he came to 
Boonesborough and gave the alarm in time to save the 
settlement from destruction. 

Other pioneers came into Kentucky, following the trail 
that Boone had made over the mountains. More cabins 
arose in the clearings, and more forts were built to protect 
the settlers from the watchful and dangerous Indians. 
Kentucky grew and prospered. The forests furnished game 
in abundance, the blue grass gave splendid pasturage for 
cows and horses, the streams supplied fish, while the gar- 
dens and fields yielded plenty of corn, fruit, and vegetables. 

As for Boone himself, he ever loved the frontier. When 
the settlements in Kentucky grew too thick he moved 
deeper into the forest. The roar of the wild beast was 
sweeter music to his ears than the human voice. He spent 
his old age hunting in the wilds of the Missouri woods. 



182 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

11. GEORGE ROGERS CLARK 

The British occupied forts at Kaskaskia, Vincennes, and 
Detroit, in what was known as the Northwest Territory. 
They were so far from the seat of war during the Revolu- 
tion that they were almost forgotten. George Rogers 
Clark, of Kentucky, determined to capture these forts 
from the British. He went to Virginia and laid his plans 
before the governor, Patrick Henry, and asked for a body 
of troops ''to defend Kentucky." 

Early one summer he started down the Ohio with nearly 
two hundred men. After rowing a thousand miles the 
party landed. They hid their boats in the bushes and 
started overland to Kaskaskia in order to escape the spies 
that they knew guarded the Mississippi River. It was a 
march of more than a hundred miles through low, marshy 
land. The men waded the creeks, swam the rivers, and cut 
their way through the swamps and prairie grass until they 
came to the fort. 

When they arrived at Kaskaskia it was night, and the 
people were having a dance. The commander of the fort 
Capture of ^^^ asleep and nobody suspected an enemy near. 
Kaskaskia, Clark posted his men around the hall and quietly 
Ju y, 1 78 entered. He stood leaning against the door- 
post until some one saw him and gave the alarm. ''Go on 
with your fun," said Clark, "but remember that you are now 
dancing under the flag of Virginia." The fort surrendered 
at once. 

Clark next determined to march against Vincennes. 
It was winter and the prairie lands were flooded with water 



HEROES OF THE REVOLUTION 



183 



and covered with ice. The streams were swollen, and there 
were no bridges. The distance was one hundred and 
sixty miles, and rain fell during most of the time that Clark 
and his men were on their way. Often the men for hours 
at a time waded in water up to their waists, and on reaching 




Pioneers of the West and Northwest 



dry ground could find nothing with which to make a fire. 
More than once they spent the night in wet or frozen clothes. 
It was one of the most heroic marches on record. 

When Clark reached Vincennes he demanded the sur- 
render of the fort. Hamilton, the governor and commander, 
was amazed that Clark could reach Vincennes in such 
weather. He was playing cards and drinking when he 



184 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

heard of the arrival of the Virginians, and swore that he 

would not surrender the fort. An attack was begun by 

^ , , Clark's men. They were the best marksmen 
Capture of '^ 

Vincennes, in the world, and could easily shoot through 
February, ^j^^ loopholes of the fort. The fort soon 

1779 

agreed to surrender, and Clark and Hamilton 
met to make the terms. 

Hamilton was a cruel man and had offered to buy from 
the Indians the scalps of all their white captives. He was 
called the ^^Hair Buyer." While the conference was going 
on, a party of Indians approached the fort with a lot of 
scalps. When Clark's men saw their bloody trophies, 
they seized the Indians, tomahawked them before the fort, 
and threw their bodies into the river. 

Hamilton surrendered Vincennes, and all the Northwest 
Territory fell into the hands of the Americans. When the 
Revolution was over and a treaty of peace was made, all the 
region around the Great Lakes, out of which the states of 
Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin and a part of 
Minnesota have since been made, was considered a part of 
the United States. If it had not been for George Rogers Clark, 
all that territory might now have been a part of Canada. 



HEROES OF THE REVOLUTION 185 

12. ROBERTSON AND SEVIER 
James Robertson was a friend of Daniel Boone and, 
Uke him, loved the deep forest and the wild frontier. He 
made a hunting trip through Kentucky, and his james^^^^ 
stories of the beauty of the country so excited his 
neighbors that sixteen families agreed to move with him 
into eastern Tennessee. 

The party traveled on foot, driving the cows ahead of 
them, and with their household goods strapped on the 
backs of pack horses. On reaching the Watauga The Watauga 
River they decided to make a settlement. For settlement, 
six thousand dollars' worth of blankets, paints, 
and muskets, Robertson purchased from the Indians the use 
of the lands along the river for a term of years. 

After eight years Robertson decided to move further 
westward. He and eight companions found their way 
through the wilderness until they came to the Nashville, 
great bend of the Cumberland where Nashville 
now is Here they decided to found a settlement, ihe 
settlers soon foUowed, coming in boats on the Tennessee 
and Cumberland rivers. Nashboro, as it was then called, 
soon became a thriving colony. 

John Sevier, a companion and friend of Robertson, was 
the greatest Indian fighter in the Southwest. It is said 
he fought thirty-five battles. He was a very john Sevier 
handsome man, taU, blue-eyed, of slender andKate 
build and erect figure. When he and Robert- 
son were at the Watauga settlement the Indians made an 
attack on the fort. The siege lasted three weeks, and the 



186 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

men and women became weary of the confinement. Upon 
one occasion one of the women, Kate Sherrill, ventured 
out of the fort and was pursued by the Indians. She ran 
for the gates Uke a deer. The Indians were close behind 
her. Sevier, through a loophole, shot the foremost savage, 
just as Kate reached the stockade. She sprang up so as to 
catch the top with her hands and was drawn over by Sevier. 
He afterwards married her. 

Sevier lived in a big one-story house on Nolichucky 
River, and was known as ''Nolichucky Jack.'' He kept 
open house for everybody, and was the leader in 
Service at establishing good government, as well as in 
Mountain fighting the Indians. During the Revolution 
news was brought that the British were ravag- 
ing the country of North Carolina. Sevier collected a 
thousand of the settlers along the Watauga, mounted 
them on swift, wiry ponies, and set out across the mountains. 
Every man carried a rifle, a tomahawk, and a scalping knife. 
The officers had no swords, and there was not a bayonet 
nor a tent in the party. When they reached North Caro- 
lina they joined the backwoodsmen and defeated the British 
at King's Mountain, as we have already seen in another 
lesson. After the battle Sevier and his men returned to 
Tennessee. 

Sevier was hospitable and generous. Even the Indians 
liked him because he treated them kindly whenever they 
visited him. He fought them whenever they gave him 
cause, but never abused them nor violated their confidence. 
Everywhere in Tennessee he was the idol of the people. 



HEROES OF THE REVOLUTION 187 

When word came that "Nohchucky Jack" was in town 
crowds went out to meet him, to shake his hand, and talk 
with him. 

The pioneers kept swarming over the mountains. By 
the close of the Revolution twenty-five thousand people had 
moved into Tennessee and Kentucky. When Tennessee 
became a State, John Sevier was chosen its first governor, 
which office he held for twelve years. His name is still 
a household word among the people of east Tennessee. 

Thus we see that the colonies had not only won their 
independence from the mother country, but had begun 
to spread out over the great continent they had acquired 
by conquest and treaty. 

QUESTIONS 

1. What were some of the hardships of the trade laws of Eng- 
land? What was taxation without representation? What was the 
Stamp Act? Who was the king of England at this time and what 
can you say of his character? What did some of the greatest and 
wisest men in Parliament deny? Who was Patrick Henry? What 
was the Parsons' Case? Describe the oration of Henry on that occa- 
sion. What did he say m his speech agaiast the Stamp Act? 
What did the British government then do? 

2. Describe the conduct of the British troops in Boston. 
Describe the Boston Massacre. What can you say of Samuel 
Adams? Describe his interview with the governor of Boston. 
What new tax did the British Parliament lay upon the colonies? 
How did the people treat this tax? Describe the Boston Tea 
Party. 

3. What did General Gage at Boston resolve to do? Describe 
Paul Revere's ride. Describe the escape of Hancock and Adams. 



188 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

What happened at Lexington? What did the British do at Con- 
cord? Describe the battle of Concord. What incidents followed 
the battle? What was the first Declaration of Independence? 

4. Who was chosen commander-in-chief of the colonial army? 
Describe Washington at this time. Describe the battle of Bunker 
Hill. Where did Washington take command of the army? De- 
scribe Washington's army at this time. By what means did 
Washington force the British out of Boston? 

5. What defences were prepared for Charleston? Describe the 
bombardment. Describe the bravery of Sergeant Jasper. What 
resolution was introduced in the Continental Congress by Richard 
Henry Lee? What committee was appointed? Who wrote the 
Declaration of Independence? When was it adopted and signed? 
How was the declaration received by the people? 

6. Describe Washington's retreat across New Jersey. What 
were the British at Trenton doing? Describe the conduct of Rail. 
What was the result of the battle of Trenton? Describe the battle 
of Princeton. Where did Burgoyne surrender? What did the king 
of France acknowledge? Who was Lafayette and how did he 
help America? Describe the sufferings at Valley Forge. Tell the 
story of the patriotism of Lydia Darrah. 

7. Tell the story of Molly Pitcher at the battle of Monmouth. 
What cities in the South did the British capture? How did 
Marion and his men wage war? What was Marion called? De- 
scribe Marion's appearance and character. Describe Thomas 
Sumter. What was he called? What is guerrilla warfare? De- 
scribe the braverj^ of Nancy Hart. 

8. Of what treason was Benedict Arnold guilty? How was 
Major Andre captured? What was the fate of Major Andre? 
Tell some incidents of the later life of Arnold. What was the 
result of the battle of King's Mountain? Who was in command 
of the American forces in the South? Describe some incidents in 
the career of General Greene. Where did Cornwallis surrender? 



HEROES OF THE REVOLUTION 189 

9. Describe the early life of Benjamin Franklin. Describe 
his arrival in Philadelphia. What were some of his maxims? 
What were some of his practical ideas? What did he persuade the 
people of Philadelphia to do? What did Franklin think about the 
Stamp Act? How was Frankhn treated in France? Tell the story 
of Franklin's toast. How was he treated on leaving France? 

10. Describe Boone's hunting trip into Kentucky. What 
settlement was made in Kentucky? How did the Indians treat 
Boone? Tell the story of Boone's escape and the saving of Boones- 
borough. How did Kentucky increase in population? Where did 
Boone spend his last days? 

11. What did George Rogers Clark determine to do? De- 
scribe his voyage down the Ohio and the hardships of the men. 
Describe the capture of Kaskaskia. Against what city did Clark 
next advance? Describe the hardships of the march. Describe 
the attack on Vincennes. Why was Hamilton called the Hair 
Buyer? What territory fell into the hands of the Americans? 

12. Who was James Robertson? Describe the Watauga 
settlement. When was Nashville settled? Who was John Sevier? 
How did he save Kate Sherrill? By what name was Sevier known? 
What service did he render at King's Mountain? Describe his 
popularity. 



CHAPTER V 
THE UNITED STATES 



1. ORGANIZING THE GOVERNMENT 

There were about four million people in the United 
States at the end of the Revolution, most of them living in 
New England and the middle colonies. The cities were 
small, and by no means had the splendid appearance that 
many of them have today. The people were heavily in 
debt on account of the war, but everywhere there was 
rejoicing that the country was free of English rule, and 
the people faced the future with determination and 
confidence. 

During the war the colonies had been bound together 
by mutual agreement because they faced a common danger. 
Ne d f Delegates from all the colonies had met in a 

permanent Continental Congress and Articles of Con- 
form of gov- federation had been agreed upon mainly for 

emment . . . « t^x 

governmg the country m time of war. Now 

that peace had come it became plain that the country 
needed a permanent form of government that would bind 
all the colonies together into one nation. The states might 
be independent of England, but they could not remain in- 
dependent of one another. A general government for all 
was needed. 

190 



THE UNITED STATES 191 

For the purpose of deciding upon some form of govern- 
ment, delegates from the different states met in Philadelphia, 
and after much discussion and many com- constitution 
promises, the Convention agreed upon a Gonsti- of the United 
tution of the United States. This Constitution ^*^*^'' ^^^^ 
was then sent to each state separately, to adopt or to reject. 
No state was compelled to adopt the Constitution or was 
obliged to enter the Union. When nine states had adopted 
the Constitution the new government began. After a 
while all the thirteen states adopted it. The new nation was 
known as the United States of America. The Constitution 
is an agreement entered into by all the states to organize 
one general government, ''in order to form a more perfect 
union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide 
for the common defence, promote the general welfare, and 
secure the blessings of Hberty.^' 

To be the head of the government the Constitution pro- 
vided for a President, whose duty it is to see that all the 
laws are enforced and to act- as commander-in-chief of the 
army and navy. To make the laws for the government of 
the people, it provided for a Congress, composed of repre- 
sentatives and senators from each state. It also estabhshed 
courts for the purpose of explaining the laws, and for pun- 
ishing those who violate them. 

Thus we see that the government is divided into three 
great departments: Congress is the legislative department; 
the President and his associates are the executive department; 
the Courts are the judicial department. 

The Constitution is the supreme law of the land. All 



192 



FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 



public officials are sworn to support it, all laws are made in 
accordance with it, and today we are living under the 
great and powerful government created by it. 




Copyright by Underwood & Underwood, N. Y. 

Mount Vernon 

George Washington was chosen the first President of the 

United States. On his way to New York to be inaugurated, 

at every town and village crowds of people 

went out to meet him. When he reached 

Trenton he was met by a party of young girls 

dressed in white, who scattered flowers in front of 

him while he rode under triumphal arches . When 

he reached New York he was inaugurated amid the shouts 

of the people, the waving of flags, and the booming of cannon. 



George 
Washington 
the first 
President, 
1789 



THE UNITED STATES 



193 




Copyright by Underwood & 
Underwood, N. Y. 

The Washington Monument 



Washington was President 
for two terms, or eight years. 
At the end of his second 
term he retired to Mount 
Vernon, where he died, and 
was buried amid the tears 
and mourning of a grateful 
people. 

When Washington was in- 
augurated New York was the 
capital of the country. The 
Washin ton ^^^^ ^^^^ Philadelphia became the capital. 
After ten years the seat of government was 
moved to the banks of the Potomac, where a 
capital city had been laid out and named 
Washington in honor of the great soldier and statesman. 
At that time Washington City was hardly more than a 
wilderness. The capitol building was unfinished, the Presi- 
dent's house was in an open field, there was but one good 
hotel, and there was no business and but little society. 
Today it is one of the most beautiful and brilliant cities in 
the world. 



becomes the 
capital city, 
1800 



194 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

2. ELI WHITNEY INVENTS THE COTTON GIN 

In early days all the manufacturing was done in the homes 
of the colonists and largely by hand. There were almost no 
machinery for the people to work with and no factories fot* 
them to work in. The spinning wheel and the hand loom 
were the main dependence of the people for cloth, except 
for such as was brought from England. 

Even in England the methods were simple and the product 
small until her growing commerce made it necessary for 
English inventors to devise some machinery to increase the 
output of the country, to meet the demand for cloth. It 
was not long before the spinning jenny for making thread 
and the power loom for weaving cloth and the steam engine 
for driving machinery were all invented and put into 
operation in England. 

Then began the industrial revolution and the factory 
system in England. Towns grew up around the mills and 
The industrial Workers ceased to labor in their homes and 
revolution began to labor in the central factories. But 
England guarded her secrets and forbade any exportation 
of machinery for fear that other countries would deprive 
her of the benefits of her manufactures. 

The Americans resorted to smuggling and to inventions 
of their own, so that by the end of the American Revolution 
Samuel the secrets of machinery for making cloth were 

Slater fairly well known in this country. It was 

not until 1789, however, that the way for establishing 
mills and factories became open by the arrival in America 
of Samuel Slater, who knew all about the English machinery 



THE UNITED STATES 195 

and who built entirely from memory the machinery for a 
small factory in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, in 1790. This 
was the beginning of the factory system in America and 
for this Slater has been called ^'the father of American 
cotton manufactures." 

The demand now was for more cotton to manufacture into 
cloth. There was thus a need for more raw material, since 
machines could turn out a great deal more product than 
the old hand system could possibly do. 

Very httle cotton was raised in the South at this time. 
The seed had to be separated from the lint by hand, a very 
difficult process. One person could not clean more than a 
pound of cotton in a day, and a whole family could not 
clean more than eight or ten pounds. 

Just after the Revolutionary War a ship carried eight 
small bags of cotton to England. They were seized on the 
ground that such a quantity of cotton could not be raised 
in the United States. While Washington was President, 
three hundred and ninety-nine bales were exported in one 
year from the United States, which was considered a 
wonderful crop. . A cotton field of thirty acres near Sa- 
vannah was considered a curiosity. 

EH Whitney was a young man who had come from New 
England to Georgia to teach school and practice law. 
He was hving at the home of Mrs. Nathanael Eii Whitney 
Greene, widow of the Revolutionary general, and Mrs. 
fourteen miles from Savannah. He had always 
been fond of inventing things, and had made a number of 
useful articles for Mrs. Greene. One day Mrs. Greene had 



196 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

a number of guests for dinner, and they were discussing 
the raising of cotton. One of them remarked, ''What a 
pity that some one does not invent a machine for separat- 
ing the seed from the cotton!" 

Mrs. Greene at once thought of the young man who 
had aided her several times, and said, ''Why not ask 
Mr. Whitney to make a machine of this sort? He can do 
anything." 

Whitney was sent for, some seed cotton was given him, 
and the difficulties explained. He had to make his own 
The cotton tools, and even his own wire. After several 
gin invented, months' labor he succeeded in making a 
^ ^^ machine that did as much work as many hands. 

He had invented the cotton engine, or the cotton gin as we 
now know it. 

As soon as the farmers learned about the cotton gin and 
the work it could do, they began to plant cotton in quan- 
tity. By using the Whitney gin, they could clean all the 
cotton they could raise. In a few years a hundred thousand 
bales were shipped to England. Cotton land rose in price, 
slaves were brought to the fields, and the great industry of 
the South was started. 

The first effect of the invention of the cotton gin was to 
increase the quantity of the cotton raised in the South. 
Effect of the Since that time the farmers have planted more 
cotton gin on and more cotton, until today twelve milHon or 
t e out more bales are raised every year. The second 

effect was to fasten slaveholding on the South. The 
negroes were well suited for work in the cotton fields. 



THE UNITED STATES 197 

Their labor was. cheap and easily controlled. The demand 
for cotton by the Northern and foreign mills increased 
every year. So the Southern farmers bought more slaves 
and planted more cotton. At the present day the South 
not only raises cotton, but has many fine cotton mills. 



198 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

3. THOMAS JEFFERSON 

When Patrick Henry was delivering his great speech 
against the Stamp Act^ a young man stood leaning against 
Jefferson as the door Hstening to the burning words of the 
a student orator. The young man was Thomas Jefferson. 
He had come from his home in Virginia when he was seven- 
teen years of age, to become a student at William and Mary 
College. He had always loved books and while at college 
often studied fifteen hours a day. He was a friend of Patrick 
Henry and shared a room with him. His heart was fired by 
the eloquence of his friend, and he resolved to take part in 
the great questions of the day. 

Jefferson was a tall, athletic young man, a dead shot 
with a rifle, and a daring and skilful horseman. He was 
His accom- fond of company, and liked to gather a few 
phshments friends in the tavern of the town to spend an 
evening in talking and in music. He was not an orator, 
though he was a successful lawyer before a jury. He 
became famous as one of the most profound thinkers and 
writers on political subjects that our country has known. 

He was a scholar of great learning. He seemed to know 
everything. It was said that he ''could calculate an eclipse, 
survey an estate, tie an artery, plan an edifice, try a case, 
break a horse, dance a minuet, and play the violin.'^ An 
acquaintance said, ''When he spoke of law_, I thought he was 
a lawyer; when he talked about mechanics, I was sure he 
was an engineer; when he got into medicine, it was evident 
that he was a physician; when he discussed theology, I was 
convinced that he must be a clergyman; when he talked 



THE UNITED STATES 199 

literature, I made up my mind that I had run against a col- 
lege professor." 

When the Revolution came on, Jefferson was a delegate 
from Virginia to the Continental Congress. Richard Henry- 
Lee, also of Virginia, introduced a resolution declaring that 
"these united colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and 
independent states." Jefferson was appointed on the 
committee to draw up a declaration to that effect. When 
the committee met, the members asked Jefferson to write it 
as the expression of the common feehng of all the delegates 
and of all the colonies. 

He then wrote the Declaration of Independence. Benja- 
min FrankHn and John Adams changed a few words, and 
the report of the committee went to the Con- ^^^ ^ 
gress. During the debate on its adoption. Declaration 
Jefferson, who could write but could not make of inde- 

Dendsnce 

a speech, hstened impatiently but silently to 
the criticisms of his work. Frankhn sat near him and con- 
soled him with amusing stories. 

Jefferson was at one time a member of the legislature 
of Virginia. While there he succeeded in having the legis- 
lature repeal the old law of that state requiring Jefferson's 
every one to support the Episcopal church reforms 
which was the estabhshed church in Virginia, whether 
he belonged to it or not. He is called the ''author of re- 
hgious hberty in Virginia." He is also the founder of the 
University of Virginia, and planned a system for pubHc 
education from the lowest grades through the University 
itself. 



200 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

Jefferson afterwards became governor of Virginia, and 
was minister to France at the time the Constitution was 
adopted. When Washington was President he was selected 
Secretary of State. After a few years' service he retired to 



■[ 


1 


I^^^HI^II 




1 




I 


1 




■""'H 


' ^^^1 




^K 


'f 










h1 


jL 






#^ 


jfi,, ' .-'■'Vt^h^l^dii^^^M 


BH 


■ 


^^M 


^m 


wk 




ffliiilM 


9 






^H 




MBMWji|| 


iiial 






^^H 




■ 


1 




1 





Thomas Jefferson 

live in his beautiful home, Monticello, in Virginia. When 
John Adams was elected President to succeed Washington, 
Jefferson was elected Vice-President. 



THE UNITED STATES 201 

Jefferson was the founder and leader of the political 
party that in those days was known as the Anti-FederaHst 
Party, which later on became the Republican Becomes 
Party, and which today is known as the President, 
Democratic Party. After the term of office of 
John Adams expired, Jefferson was elected President of the 
United States. 

Jefferson believed very firmly in what is known as States^ 
Rights, which is the right of the states to decide many 
questions for themselves, and which holds the government 
to a strict construction of the Constitution. All powers not 
expressly given to the general government are reserved to 
the states themselves. 

Jefferson was very simple and friendly in his manners. 
He shook hands with all who came to see him, gave no great 
balls and parties, dressed with simplicity, and lived quietly 
and studiously at the White House, loved and admired by 
all who knew him. 



202 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

4. STEPHEN DECATUR PUNISHES THE PIRATES 

Tripoli is a small country on the northern coast of 
Africa, and is one of the Barbary States. When Jefferson 
The pirates was President the rulers of these States were 
of Tnpoh pirates. Their vessels attacked and plundered 
the merchant ships of all nations, as they tried to pass 
through the Mediterranean Sea. Several nations, in an 
effort to protect their merchant ships from attack, paid 
tribute to the pirates, instead of punishing them and de- 
stroying the pirate vessels. 

The United States also had been paying tribute to the 
pirates, but this did not save the American vessels and 
Plunder of Seamen from attack and robbery. American 
American sailors were made slaves and were compelled 

vesses ^^ work on the farms or in the groves of rich 

Tripohtan landowners. American officers .were shut up 
in loathsome prisons, given poor food, and subjected to 
many insults. American vessels were robbed of their 
cargoes and many of them destroyed by the pirates. It was 
by no means an unusual occurrence for a preacher in an 
American church to announce to his congregation that some 
member or neighbor had been captured by the pirates in 
the Mediterranean, and to ask for money to be paid for 
his ransom. 

The pirates were getting more insolent than ever, were 
demanding more tribute money, and were more regardless 
of their promises. 

An American ship captain was compelled to haul down 



THE UNITED STATES 203 

his own flag and run up that of Algiers. This was very 
humiUating to the officers and men of the American ship. 
The next year the ruler of Tripoh was very insulting to 
those who brought the tribute money and declared the 
tribute was not large enough. All this brought on war 
between the United States and Tripoli. 

Our navy consisted of only six small vessels. Four of 
them were sent to fight the pirates on the Mediterranean. 
Our little fleet gave a good account of itself. Several pirate 
ships were captured, and others were driven away from their 
attack on merchant vessels. 

One accident befell the American fleet. The frigate 
Philadelphia while giving chase to a pirate ship, struck 
on a rock in the harbor of Tripoli, and was compelled to 
surrender. The pirates swarmed aboard, plundered the 
ship of everything valuable, and took the seamen and 
officers ashore as prisoners. It was a sad and discouraging 
mishap to the Americans. 

For months the Philadelphia lay helpless on the rocks 
in the harbor of Tripoli. It was manned by a pirate crew 
and guarded by pirate ships. At last Lieu- Lieutenant 
tenant Stephen Decatur, in command of a Stephen 
little vessel that had been captured from the ^^ 
pirates, was ordered to destroy the Philadelphia. It was a 
cold night in winter, and a heavy wind was blowing. With 
no lights to guide him, Decatur sailed close to the Phila- 
delphia before he was discovered. The pirates on board, 
not knowing what vessel it was, called out to him to keep off. 



204 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

Decatur kept on until his vessel touched the Philadelphia. 
He then cried out, "Board her!" His men sprang aboard, 
Recapture of drew their swords, and soon overpowered the 
the "Phiia- pirate crew. Many of the pirates were cut 
de phia down, and others driven overboard into the sea. 

Knowing that he could not move the ship, Decatur ordered 
it to be set on fire. Flames arose quickly from the sides, 
while Decatur escaped without the loss of a single man. 

After this the harbor was bombarded by the American 
fleet until the ruler of Tripoli was forced to make terms of 
Punishing peace. After that no more tribute money was 
the pirates ^^[^ ^q ^]^g pirates, and no more American 
merchant vessels were disturbed as they sailed on the 
Mediterranean Sea. Our little navy had won the respect 
of the world by punishing the pirates and bringing them 
to terms. 

When Decatur returned to America he was received 
everywhere with great respect. He was hailed as the 
Honors to hero who had carried the American flag to 
Decatur victory in our first war in foreign waters. 

Congress voted him a sword for his bravery, receptions 
were held, speeches of congratulation were made, and 
everywhere the people were proud of the deeds of the 
navy which, though small in size, was yet so great in valor. 



THE UNITED STATES 205 

5. PURCHASING AND EXPLORING LOUISIANA 

When Jefferson was elected President, the Mississippi 
River was the western boundary of our country. Beyond 
was the great territory known as Louisiana, which was again 
in possession of the French. New Orleans, also a French 
possession, was the seaport for the products of the Missis- 
sippi valley. The farmers along the Ohio and Mississippi 
loaded their produce on rafts or in boats and floated it down 
to New Orleans, to be carried in ships to foreign markets. 

It was important for the United States to own New 
Orleans. The farmers of the West needed for their trade 
an outlet which no foreign country could xheLouisi- 
close at its pleasure. Therefore Jefferson sent ana Pur- 
commissioners to France to buy New Orleans. ^ ^^^' 
France was at war with England and was badly in need of 
money. Consequently, that country proposed to sell not 
only New Orleans but all the Louisiana territory for fifteen 
million dollars. The trade was promptly made and Louisi- 
ana came into our possession. 

It was a great bargain for America. We secured the 
city of New Orleans and gained control of the Mississippi 
River. We added to our territory a domain larger than 
the original thirteen states. The size of the United States 
was doubled and our western boundary was advanced 
from the Mississippi River to the Rocky Mountains. 

All the vast area was but little known to the white man. 
It had not yet been explored and all the wonders of the 
great West were quite unknown to the settlements on the 
Atlantic. New Orleans was a small town of eight or ten 



206 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

thousand people, living in wooden houses. It gave but 
little indication then of the great and beautiful city it has 
The unknown since become. St. Louis had only about one thou- 
^®^* sand people, mainly boatmen or traders with 

the Indian tribes of the West. Along the river were a few 
scattered villages, and occasionally some hunter or trapper 
would penetrate the deep forest beyond the great river. 
For the most part, however, the great Western country so 
well known to us today was an unexplored region inhabited 
by Indians of whose nature and condition the white men 
were entirely ignorant. 

Jefferson selected two young men to explore our new 
possessions. One was Captain Meriwether Lewis, his own 
Lewis and Secretary; the other was Captain William Clark, 
Clark ^Y^Q brother of George Rogers Clark. They 

were both young men who had seen service on the border. 
They were both Virginians, eager for adventure, and entered 
into the enterprise with all their spirit. They were directed 
to visit the Indian tribes and tell them of the change of 
ownership ; also to study the plants and animals and observe 
the soil and climate of the West. They were provided with 
boats, provisions, and arms, as well as presents for the 
Indians 

The journey was to be a long one — several thousand 
miles, and most of it was on rivers unknown to the explorers. 
The party consisted of forty-three brave men. They were 
accustomed to hardship, knew the secrets of the forest and 
streams, and started out with confidence and hope. 



THE UNITED STATES 



207 



With boats loaded with coffee, sugar, crackers, dried 
meat, tools, clothing, and presents, the party dropped down 
the Ohio, passed up the Mississippi, and spent Exploring 
the winter at the little village of St. Louis. *^® ^®^* 
In the spring of 1804 they started up the Missouri. In 
many places the current was swift, and often the driftwood 




The Lewis and Clark Expedition 

nearly upset the boats. The men explored the regions 
along the river and killed deer, bears, and other game for 
food. Near the bluffs opposite the present city of Omaha, 
a council was held with the Indians. The peace pipe was 
smoked, presents were distributed, and the Indians were 
told that the land now belonged to the Great Father at 
Washington. The place was named Council Bluffs. 



208 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

After traveling sixteen hundred miles the party camped 
for the winter. In the spring they started again, passed 
the mouth of the Yellowstone, and at last came in sight 
of the Rocky Mountains. It was a dangerous trip, through 
wild canons, over slippery heights, and along steep precipices 
where one false step would mean instant death. Weary, 
ragged, half-starved, and footsore, they came to the other side 
of the mountains. 

After a long march they reached the Columbia River. 
Here they built canoes and descended the river until they 
Return of came to the Pacific Ocean. They had crossed 
the party, the western half of the American continent, 

1807 

and were glad enough to build a comfortable 
camp and spend the winter on the Pacific slope. In the 
spring they began their long journey homeward. They 
crossed the mountains and floated down the Missouri until 
they came to St. Louis, after an absence of two years and 
four months. 

Every one had given them up for lost or dead. Hence 
there was great joy at their return, and great interest was 
taken in the wonderful story they had to tell. 



THE UNITED STATES 209 

6. ROBERT FULTON PERFECTS THE STEAMBOAT 

One morning a crowd of people stood on a dock in New 
York city waiting to see a strange sight. Robert Fulton 
had announced that he had made a boat that "Fulton's 
would move by steam power, and had invited ^oily" 
a number of friends to join him in the first trip of the 
boat up the Hudson River to Albany. On all sides were 
graceful sailboats, and when the people saw Fulton's ugly 
little craft with a smokestack sending out clouds of smoke 
they were much amused and called it ' 'Fulton's Folly." 

Fulton had always been fond of inventing things. When 
he was a boy he made the lead for his own pencils ; he as- 
tonished the citizens of his town by making his own fireworks 
for a Fourth of July celebration; he suggested plans for 
improving guns; and one day, on a fishing trip, worked 
out a plan for moving the boat by paddle wheels turned 
by a crank. 

When Fulton became a man he learned to paint pictures, 
but his mind was always on practical things. He sug- 
gested a scheme for canals and locks, he de- 
vised a submarine torpedo boat, and at last Robert Fulton 

. 1 . 1 .1 1 builds the 

became mterested m the experiment that others «ciermont" 

were making to propel a boat by paddle wheels 
moved by steam power. The steamboats that others 
had made had not succeeded for various reasons, but 
Fulton resolved to make one that would be a success. 
When he made his steamboat he named it the Clermont 
in honor of the home of his friend Robert Livingston, who 
provided money for the building of the boat. It was then 



210 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

that he invited his friends for the trial trip, and the crowd 
gathered to see them start. 

The boat was quite an ungainly affair. Livingston, who 
was on board, said, ^^It looks like a sawmill mounted on a 
scow and set on fire." Fulton moved among his guests 
and tried to make them cheerful. They were doubtful 
about the success of the experiment and felt very foohsh 
as the crowd on shore made fun of them. Fulton gave the 
order for the engines to start, and to the surprise of every 
one the boat moved boldly away from the shore. 

A cheer arose from the crowd and from the passengers. 
The boat stopped and the cheers ceased. The people on 
Th "ci r board begged to be put ashore, for they thought 
mont" starts the boat was a failure and were afraid it might 
onitsvoy- ^[^]^^ Fulton asked them to wait a half 
hour while he found out what was the matter. 
He went below and in a few minutes made things right. 
The engines started, the boat moved, the crowds cheered 
again, and the guests smiled. This time the boat did not 
stop, but kept on its way up the river. As it passed the 
sailing vessels, the villages on the shore, and the farmhouses 
by the way, the people waved their hats and handkerchiefs 
and shouted congratulations. 

At last the Clermont reached Albany, and started on its 
return down the river. This was accomplished in safety, 
and Fulton^s boat was pronounced a success. The Cler- 
mont soon began to make regular trips up the Hudson, 
charging seven dollars from New York to Albany. 



THE UNITED STATES 



211 



Within a few years a number of other steamboats were 
built and used for carrying passengers and freight up and 
' down the Hudson River and around the harbor of New 
York. Steam ferryboats also came into use. 




The ^'Savannah" 

The attention of the people was now turned to steam 
navigation. Fulton himself put a boat on the Ohio River 
at Pittsburgh in 1811. A few years later steam- The steamship 
boats were raaking regular trips between St. Savannah" 
Louis and New Orleans. In 1819 a steamship named the 
Savannah made the first voyage of a steamship across 
the Atlantic Ocean. The vessel was built for a company in 
Savannah, Georgia, and had side paddle wheels and also 
carried sails. When the people in the ports of Europe saw 
the strange sight of a ship coming into harbor with smoke 
rolling from its funnels, they hastened to the water's edge 
with offers to put out the fire. 



212 



FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 



Since that time have come the great passenger and freight 
vessels that cross all oceans in every kind of weather, and 
monster battleships for the navy of all great nations, and 
many kinds of steam-driven vessels of smaller size, that add 
greatly to the business and comfort of all people. 




A STEAMSHIP OF THE PRESENT DAY 



THE UNITED STATES 213 

7. THE WAR OF 1812 

After Jefferson's term of office expired, James Madison, 
of Virginia , became President. It was during his adminis- 
tration that the second war with England occurred. It is 
also called the War of 1812. 

England and France had been at war for some time. 
The United States tried to avoid favoring either country, 
and wished to remain neutral in the war. England, how- 
ever, passed a law that any American ship caught trading 
with France should be seized. France likewise passed a 
law that any American ship caught trading with England 
should be seized. Thus the American ships could not 
safely trade with either country, and our commerce suffered 
greatly. 

Many of our vessels were seized upon various pretexts, 
and their cargoes captured. French vessels seized over ten 
million dollars' worth of American property, impressing 
England, however, was more offensive than seamen 
France. Her war vessels stopped our merchantmen on the 
seas, sent armed men aboard, mustered the crew, and seized 
the sailors for the British service. The British officers 
said they were searching for English seamen only, but they 
made little effort to find out whether those they seized were 
born in England or in the United States. This was called 
''impressing seamen." The English had declared their rule 
to be ''Once an Englishman always an Englishman." 

Hundreds of American sailors were seized and forced to 
enter the British service. A storm of protest arose from all 
parts of the country. England insisted upon her right to 



n 



214 



FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 



impress seamen from American vessels, and to forbid us 
trading with France. Thereupon war for the second time 

was declared against England. 
War declared 'pj^g ^^j. lasted about two years and a half. 
1812 ' The battles were mainly along the Canadian 

border, since Canada was a British posses- 
sion, or were fought at sea. There was a great difference 
between the powerful nation of England and the young 




Warships of 1812 



nation on this side of the Atlantic. England had 
over eight hundred war vessels of all kinds, the United 
States had almost none. England had a hundred and fifty 
thousand seamen, the United States had about six thousand. 
But England was engaged in other wars and the demands 
upon her resources were very heavy. 



THE UNITED STATES 215 

The American vessel Constitution fell in with the British 
man-of-war Guerriere near the coast of Nova Scotia. The 
British ship had challenged any American The "Constitu- 
vessel to combat and the Constitution went tion"andthe 
out to accept the challenge. The two ships "6""*®^® 
drew near each other, the American ship withholding its 
fire until it came in close range. The British ship poured 
its broadsides into the Constitution, but without serious 
damage. At last the vessels came fairly abreast. The 
men were in pistol range and could easily see one another. 

The Constitution opened fire upon her enemy. Broadside 
after broadside was poured into the Guerriere, Her masts 
fell one by one, and soon she was a helpless wreck upon the 
water. Her commander surrendered after he saw it was 
useless to continue the struggle. 

During the battle it was noticed that several of the 
enemy's cannon balls fell from the Constitution without 
piercing the wooden sides. An old sailor cried out, "She is 
an old ironside, sir, she is an old ironside. '' From that 
time the Constitution was called ''Old Ironsides. '' 

Some months later Captain Lawrence in command of the 

Chesapeake sailed out of Boston harbor to engage the 

British ship Shannon. The fight lasted but a 

short time and the Chesapeake was completely ^^^ Chesa- 
peake and 
disabled by the shots of her enemy. Lawrence the "Shannon" 

was mortally wounded, and as he was carried 

below the decks he said to those around him, ''Don't give 

up the ship." These words have been an inspiration to 

every American seaman since that time. 



216 



FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 



The most famous naval battle of the war was the battle 
of Lake Erie. The Americans decided to get control of 
Lake Erie and Oliver H. Perry, a young naval officer, was 
sent to accomplish the task. Perry had to cut timber from 
the woods and build the ships for his fleet; the iron, stores, 




Commodore Perry changes ships at the battle on Lake Erie 



canvas, and guns had to be brought in sledges from distant 
cities. After a winter spent in building the fleet. Perry 
summoned his men on board, sailed into the lake, and 
challenged the British ships to battle. 

It was a desperate engagement that followed. Perry's 
flagship was shot to pieces and was about to sink. In the 
midst of the battle, Perry took his little brother, twelve years 



THE UNITED STATES 217 

old, and entering a small boat reached another vessel, in 
spite of the bullets of the enemy. The battle continued 
fiercely until several of the British ships were Battle of 
rendered useless, and surrendered. The others Lake Erie 
tried to escape, but were pursued and captured. Perry sat 
down while the smoke of the battle was still in the air and 
wrote a message to the commander-in-chief, saying, ''We 
have met the enemy, and they are ours." 

This great victory gave us control of Lake Erie, and com- 
pelled the British to retire into Canada. The result filled 
the people with pride and enthusiasm. We had won many 
naval victories in the war. We had proved that ship for 
ship, man for man, and gun for gun, America was more 
than a match for England. 

At one time, the British fleet sailed up Chesapeake Bay 
and landed an army that captured Washington City. 
President Madison and the Cabinet barely -vvashington 
escaped. The British burned the Capitol bumed by 
and other pubhc buildings, and then pro- ^^e British, 

August, 1814 

ceeded to Baltimore. That place was bom- 
barded for many hours, but was not captured by the British. 
During the bombardment of Fort McHenry, which was the 
main defence of Baltimore, Francis S. Key, who was detained 
on board a British ship, watched the firing of the xhe "star 
guns all night long. In the early morning he Spangled 
saw that the flag was still there. The fort had 
not surrendered. On the back of an old letter he wrote 
the ''Star Spangled Banner," which has since become our 
national song of rejoicing. 



218 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

8. ANDREW JACKSON AND THE BATTLE OF 
NEW ORLEANS 

Before we come to the end of the War of 1812 we must 
learn something of Andrew Jackson. During the Revolu- 
The young ^^^n he was a poor country boy, living on the 
Andrew border line between North Carohna and South 

jac son Carolina, tall, freckle-faced, and full of fire and 

mischief. He had learned the terrors of war, for the 
British had killed many of his neighbors and friends, 
as well as his own brother. When he was thirteen or four- 
teen years of age he was taken prisoner and a British officer 
said roughly, ''Boy, clean my boots!" The fiery young 
Jackson replied, "I am a prisoner of war, not a servant; you 
can clean them yourself." The officer struck him on the 
head with a sword, leaving a scar that he carried all his Hfe. 

When Jackson became a man he moved to Nashville, 
Tennessee, and began to practice law. The country was 
rough and full of Indians, and the villages were far apart. 
He often rode many miles through the forests to reach the 
court. His high temper led him into many quarrels and 
fights, and he fought a number of duels. When Tennessee 
became a state he was elected to Congress, and afterwards 
became a senator. He was not fond of political Hfe, how- 
ever, and soon retired from office. 

During the War of 1812 Jackson was in command of the 
forces that defended the southern border. At Fort Mims, 
in Alabama, the Creek Indians had fallen upon the garrison 
and massacred several hundred men, women, and children. 

Tennessee raised a body of troops to punish the Creeks 



THE UNITED STATES 



219 




|r/lMAPRrSOltER 

j)rWAR,NOTA SCflV- 

J;|NI;/OUC/irf CtE/JH. 

HEW yOURSELF'' 




and Jackson was put in 
command. He was in 
bed at the time, suffering 
from wounds which he 
had received in a quarrel 
a few weeks before. His 
physicians advised him 
not to leave his bed, but Jackson arose, 
and almost fainting from weakness he put 
his ami in a sling, mounted campaign 
his horse, and started on his against the 

Indians 

campaign. 

During the campaign some soldiers 
grew mutinous because food was scarce, 
and threatened to return home. Jackson, 
with his wounded arm still in a sling, 
rode up to them and taking his pistol in his 
free hand, pointed it at them saying, ''I 
will shoot the first man that moves." 
The soldiers knew he was a man of his 
word, and there was no further trouble 
from the mutinous men. They admired 
and loved Jackson, but they were also afraid of him 




Jackson and the 
British officer 



220 



FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 



The Creeks had been stirred up by Tecumseh, a famous 

Indian warrior. Tecumseh was probably the greatest 

American Indian that the race ever produced. 

ecumse ^^ ^^^ ^ noblc soldier, and never allowed his 

prisoners to be tortured. Upon one occasion he came 




Andrew Jackson 



upon a number of Indians engaged in torturing a lot of 
capti\ es while a British general looked on unconcerned. 
Tecumseh furiously thrust the Indians aside, freed the poor 



THE UNITED STATES 221 

wretches from their torture, and turning to the general, 
said, ''Why do you allow such an outrage?" ''Your warriors 
cannot be restrained/' was the reply. "You are not fit to 
command," cried Tecumseh. "Go home and put on dresses 
like a woman." 

Tecumseh was an able general, skilled in woodcraft and 
strategy. He was personally very brave. As an orator he 
had few equals; no one could resist his splendid eloquence. 

When Tecumseh went to Alabama to stir up the Creeks, 
he found them unwilling to rebel against the whites. lie 
angrily told them, "Your blood is white. You do not want 
to fight. You do not believe the Great Spirit has sent me, 
but you shall beheve it. I am going back to Detroit. When 
I get there I shall stamp my foot on the ground and shake 
every house in your village." 

After he left, the Indians counted the days until he should 
reach home. About the time he was due there, an earth- 
quake shook the village. The Indians rushed wildly from 
their dwellings, crying, "Tecumseh is in Detroit: we feel 
the stamp of his foot." 

Jackson continued in pursuit of the Creeks. He defeated 
them at the battle of Horseshoe Bend on the Tallapoosa 
River. The power of the Indians in the South was broken 
forever, and they were glad to sue for peace. Jackson had 
marched his army long and far, and had endured much 
hardship without complaint, and so his soldiers named him 
"Old Hickory" because he was so tough. 

The British threatened to attack New Orleans. General 
Jackson hurried his army to that place. He found the 



222 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

people in a panic of fear and distress. He immediately 
declared martial law. The British landed below the city 
Battle of ^^^ Jackson began to build his defences. Day 

New Orleans, and night for weeks the work went on. Every 
ms ^^ ^' horse, mule, ox, and cart in the city was put 
into service. The British advanced at night, 
but Jackson was on the watch. The sleeping army was 
aroused and by four o'clock every man was in his place. By 
daybreak the battle began, but it was over in two hours. 
The slaughter of the British, as they advanced against 
the American earthworks, was frightful. The killed and 
wounded fell in heaps until hundreds were slain. General 
Jackson lost only a few men. The British withdrew from 
the attack and sailed away. 

The battle of New Orleans was fought two weeks after a 
treaty of peace had been signed in Europe between England 
Treaty of ^^^ ^^^ United States. There were no cables 
Peace, De- or telegraph Hnes, or swift sailing steamboats, 
cember 24, ^^ those days to Carry the news. The news of 
the great victory at New Orleans reached the 
Northern states almost simultaneously with that of the 
signing of the treaty of peace that closed the war. Every- 
where there was great rejoicing. 



THE UNITED STATES 223 

9. PROGRESS AND IMPROVEMENTS 

After the War of 1812 was over there came a long era of 
peace and prosperity. James Monroe, of Virginia, suc- 
ceeded James Madison as President. His xhe Monroe 
term of office is known as the ^'Era of Good Doctrine, 
Feeling," because there were no political quarrels 
or wars to vex the country. The administration of Monroe 
is chiefly noted for his famous message to Congress, in 
which he declared that the European governments should 
no longer found any colonies in America, or interfere in the 
affairs of any American country. This is known as the' 
''Monroe Doctrine," and is one of the estabhshed principles 
of our government. 

John Quincy Adams, of Massachusetts, became the next 
President. The spirit of progress and improvement had 
seized the people. One of the greatest enter- The Erie 
prises of that day was the Erie Canal, which was ^^^^' ^^^^ 
to connect the Hudson River with Lake Erie. This canal 
is nearly four hundred miles long, and canal boats and 
barges carry great quantities of freight from one end to the 
other at very httle expense. When it was opened the 
farmers and merchants of the West abandoned the wagon 
roads and began to use the canal instead. 

By this time there were ten miUions of people in the 
United States. Instead of thirteen states there were 
twenty-four. Throughout the North, people were building 
mills and factories, and in the South more cotton was raised 
every year. Steamboats were plying on nearly all the 
large rivers, roads were opened between the large towns, 



224 



FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 



and the nation was showing great progress and prosperity. 
Coal was coming slowly into use, and even gas was being 
introduced into a few large cities. 




Co/^yrinl-t /'_' h.lrrr 



!l Film Co., Cliicjao 

An early locomotive 



The locomotive and the railroad car came into notice 
about this time. The longest and the most important 
Beginning of o^ ^^e early railroads in America was between 



railroads, 
1830 



Charleston and Hamburg, South Carolina. 

The locomotive used on this road was a very 
crude affair. It was the first locomotive built in the United 
States for actual service on a railroad. It was fed with 
fat pine and sent out clouds of smoke and showers of hot 
cinders. At the end of a trip the blackened passengers 



THE UNITED STATES 



225 



looked like negroes. A sad accident happened. The negro 
fireman, tired of hearing the hissing steam, fastened down 
the steam valve, and then to make sm^e sat on it. The 
result is easily imagined. 

On some of the early railroads, the coaches for the pas- 
sengers were like huge barrels mounted on trucks. The 
conductor walked on a little platform outside Early raii- 
and collected fares through small windows. ^^^^^ 
The rails were flat, and not very securely fastened to the 
ties, so that they occasionally curved Uke snakes and ran 




One of the first railroad trains 



through the bottom of the cars, to the great danger of the 
passengers. 

The speed of the early locomotive was very slow. When 
the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad announced that it would 
use steam power instead of horse power on its Trying expe- 
road, people were in doubt which was the means rience of 
of faster travel. On a trial of speed between P^^^^^sers 
the engine and a stagecoach the horse came in as winner. 

A trip over the Mohawk Valley road was an occasion 
of great display. The engineer w^ore a dress coat and 
the rude coaches were full of distinguished guests in 



226 



FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 



fine clothes. The coaches were held together by slack 
chains, so that when the train started nearly everybody 
was thrown out of his seat. The engine sent out so 
much smoke that the passengers were almost bUnded and 
choked, and the hot cinders made them so uncomfort- 
able that they raised their umbrellas. But as the um- 
brellas soon caught fire they were thrown away, while 




Copyright bj . ,. 



A, I. Co., Chicago 

A MODERN PASSENGER TRAIN 



the guests spent their time beating each other with hats, 
handkerchiefs, and canes to put out the fire. Never- 
theless, the trip was declared a great success. 

From this beginning railroads grew rapidly. In ten 
years there were three thousand miles of road and hundreds 
of locomotives and comfortable coaches. Today the rail- 



THE UNITED STATES 



227 



roads of the United States, if put into a straight Hne, would 
reach nine times around the world. Express trains go 
fifty miles or more an hour, and every comfort is provided 
for the passengers. 

Of late, American engineers have made electric locomo- 
tives of great speed and power, which in our large cities 




Copyright by Underwood & Underwood, N. Y. 

A FLYING MACHINE 



are taking the place of steam locomotives. The flying 
machine has already been tested to a speed of more than a 
hundred miles an hour. In modern warfare it is used for 
fighting, scouting, and bombing, and for photographic 
purposes. 



228 



FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 




10. HENRY CLAY 

Many of the great men of 
America were born in the country, 
with few advantages, 
spending their early Jf^^^fsllshes 
Hfe in poverty, toil, 
and hardship. They became 
eminent by faithful work, hard 
study, and close attention to duty. 
Henry Clay was one of these. 
When he was a boy in Virginia 
he attended school in a log 
schoolhouse, plowed barefoot in 
the fields, and could often be seen 
riding a pony to mill, seated on a 
meal sack. People soon began to 
call him the ^^Mill Boy of the 
Slashes," because the Slashes was 
the name of the district in which 
he lived. In after life he was proud 
of the name they had given him. 

When he was about fifteen 
years of age he moved to Rich- 
mond and became a copying clerk 
in one of the courts. When he 
first entered the clerk's office he 
was tall and awkward and wore a 
badly fitting suit of clothes which 
The Mill Boy OP THE Slashes his mother had made for him. 



THE UNITED STATES 229 

The other clerks laughed at him, but they soon learned to 
respect him for his good nature and intelligence. Every 
night when the other clerks went out for 
amusement Clay went home to read. -^^^ industry 

He studied law and was soon admitted to ousness 
the bar. He made special effort to train his 
voice and memor^^ to become a great orator. He would 
read some good book, such as history, and then recite 
aloud the words or give the sense of what he had read. 
It was his custom to go into the woods or into a barn 
and try out his speeches. He would select some subject, 
study it well, and then make a speech on it, in the 
woods, or with the cattle of the barn for an audience. 
He also organized a debating club among the young men of 
Richmond and discussed the great issues of the day. By 
study, persistence, and practice he laid the foundation of 
his great career. When he was twenty-one ciay as a 
he moved to Kentucky and began to practice lawyer and 
law. He was successful from the start, and ^" ^^^^^^ 
soon had many cHents. It has been said that no murderer 
who was defended by Henry Clay ever suffered the extreme 
penalty of the law. He soon entered pubhc Ufe, was elected 
to the state legislature, then was appointed to the United 
States Senate, and later was elected to the House of Repre- 
sentatives. He was chosen as Speaker, or presiding officer, 
seven times, serving fourteen years in all. He was a great 
orator. He had a rich, musical voice, and whenever he 
spoke crowds came to hear him. He was polite in his 
manners, never forgot a name or a face, and made many 
friends by his genial smile and warm hand-grasp. 



230 



FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 



Slave states 
and free 
states 



When Clay was Speaker of the House of Representatives 
the great question of slavery was disturbing the country. 
By this time all the Northern states had freed their slaves, 
and slave holding was confined to the Southern states. In 
the North there was a growing sentiment against slavery, 
while in the South, where slave labor was profitable, the feel- 
ing was very much in favor of it. 

From time to time 
new states had been 
admitted to 
the Union. 
Some were 

free states and some were 
slave states. It so hap- 
pened that the number 
of each kind had been 
kept equal, so that ad- 
vocates from neither side 
of the slavery question 
could control the gov- 
ernment. By this time 
there were twenty-two 
states, eleven free and 
eleven slave. Then the question came up of admitting 
Maine and Missouri as states. Maine would be a free state, 
and if Missouri came in as a free state, then the free states 
would be two more in number than the slave states. 

A great discussion on the admission of Missouri arose 
in Congress. Should slavery be permitted in Missouri or 




Henry Clay 



THE UNITED STATES 231 



not? It seemed as if the Union itself was in danger. To 
bring peace to the country, Henry Clay came forward with 
a compromise. He proposed that Missouri Tj^g Missouri 
should come in as a slave state, but that all the Compromise, 

1820 

rest of the Louisiana territory, north of the Une 
that forms the southern boundary of Missouri (36° 30'), 
should forever be free territory. This is known as the 
''Missouri Compromise." Both sides agreed to it, and 
the dangerous question of slavery slept for a while. 

Clay became known as the ''Great Pacificator" on account 
of his successful efforts in preventing the dispute regarding 
slavery and the tariff from breaking up the Union. 



232 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

11. DANIEL WEBSTER 

Daniel Webster was born on a farm in New Hampshire. 
He w^as a delicate child, unable to do hard work, but was 
Webster as a wonderfully bright. Wliat time he was not 
child at play he spent in some quiet corner reading a 

book. He entered school when very young and soon 
learned all his teacher was able to teach him. He was 
knowTi far and wide as a remarkable child. One day a 
storekeeper showed him a copy of the Constitution of the 
United States printed on a cotton handkerchief. Webster 
did not rest until he had saved enough pennies to buy it, 
and when he bought it he did not rest until he had learned 
the Constitution by heart. 

Webster's father was a poor man with but Httle learning. 
He w^as wise enough, however, to know the advantages of 
Webster in an education. One day he told his son he 
college intended to send him to college. Webster was 

so anxious for an education that he could not speak for 
emotion. He afterwards said, ''A warm glow ran all over 
me, and I laid my head on my father's shoulder and wept." 
At college he was a hard student, and in a short time was the 
best speaker and writer in his class. 

When Webster left college he began to practice law, and 
later moved to Boston. He was no longer delicate and 
slender, but had become a man of noble appearance, sturdy 
and dignified. His eyes were dark and his brow was massive. 
People said, '^When Daniel Webster walked the streets of 
Boston he made the buildings look small." Once when he 
visited Europe some one said, '' Surely there goes a king!" 



THE UNITED STATES 



233 



A great wit said, on looking at his dignified appearance, 
''He is a small cathedral by himself." 

At the laying of the cornerstone of the Bunker Hill 
monimient in 1825 Daniel Webster dehvered a great oration. 
The eager crowd pressed forward and came near carrying 
away the platform on which the speakers were sitting. 
They asked him to appeal to the crowd to move back. 
Webster paused in his 
speech and begged those 
in front to desist. ''We 
cannot, Mr. Webster," 
they cried; ''it is impossi- 
ble." "Impossible!" thun- 
dered the great orator. 
"Nothing is impossible on 
Bunker Hill." The great 
crowd, swayed by his elo- 
quent words, rolled back 
like waves from the shore. 

Webster was elected a 
member of the United States 

Senate from Massachusetts. At that time one of the great 
questions agitating the country was the tariff. In order to 
raise money to run the government, taxes or Tariff for 
duties ^were laid on many articles brought from revenue 
abroad and offered for sale in America. The money thus 
raised for this purpose was called a tariff for revenue, and 
everybody was content to pay it, so long as it was used 
only to pay the expenses of the government. 




Daniel Webster 



234 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

After a while, however, the government increased the 
duties on certain articles in order to keep foreign goods 
Tariff for from being sold in America at a less price 

protection thsui the same kind of articles could be profit- 
ably manufactured and sold in this country. This was 
called a tariff for protection, and only those sections engaged 
in manufacturing were benefited by it. 

The tariff for protection bore hard on the Southern 
people because they had to buy manufactured articles 
mainly from New England, and the high prices threatened 
to reduce the South to poverty. They therefore complained 
loudly of the tariff. The New England manufacturers 
replied that without the high prices their mills would have 
to be shut down, and then they would be the ones reduced 
to poverty. A quarrel began between the agricultural 
states and the manufacturing states. Some of the Southern 
states threatened to disregard the tariff laws of Congress, 
and to declare them null and void inside their borders. 

This condition of affairs brought about a great debate 
in the United States Senate between Robert Y. Hayne, 
The Hayne- from South Carolina, and Daniel Webster, from 
Webster de- Massachusetts. Hayne declared that the 
^ ®' people of the Southern states were compelled by 

the tariff law to buy manufactured articles at a price 
they could not afford, that New England was getting 
rich and the South was getting poor, and that it was uncon- 
stitutional for laws to oppress one section in order to enrich 
another. Under such conditions a state had the right to 
refuse to obey the lawSo 



THE UNITED STATES 235 

Daniel Webster replied to the arguments of Hayne. He 
was in the prime of his Ufe, forty-eight years of age; his hair 
was black, his forehead high, his eyes dark and ^J;^^Y)steT's 
sunk under shaggy brows. His frame was reply to 
massive, and his voice deep and vibrant, hke Hayne 
the roUing of a drum. He had said, on the morning of the 
debate, 'The people shall learn this day, before the sun 
goes down, what I understand the Constitution to be." 

When he rose to speak the galleries were crowded with 
people. The senators were in their places and realized that 
a crisis was at hand in the affairs of the nation. Webster 
spoke for four hours, delivering one of the greatest speeches 
of his life. 

Webster argued that no single state could be the judge 
of the wisdom of the laws of Congress; that the union of 
the states could not be broken by any one of them, and 
that no state had the right to nullify a law of the land. 



236 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

12. JOHN C. CALHOUN 

John C. Calhoun was born and reared in South Caro- 
lina. When a boy he worked in the field with his father 
Calhoun as and listened to his stories of Revolutionary 
a student times as they sat by the fire on winter nights. 
He grew up a quiet, thoughtful boy, fond of rambling 
through the woods and of reading books on history. When 
he was about twenty years of age he entered Yale College 
and soon was the leader of his class. The president was so 
struck with his studiousness and ability that he said, 
^'Calhoun will be a great man — perhaps the President of 
the United States." 

After studying law for several years he began to practice 
in South Carohna, but he did not enjoy it. He called 
reading law "si dry and solitary journey." He preferred 
history, the great deeds of great men. He soon entered 
pubhc life and was sent to Congress about the time the 
War of 1812 began. The members were delighted with his 
powers of oratory. His great blue eyes glowed hke coals of 
fire, his hair fell in masses about his broad forehead, and 
his rich voice poured out a volume of ringing words. 

Andrew Jackson succeeded John Quincy Adams as 
President of the United States. Calhoun was Vice-Presi- 
p „ , dent. In that office it was his duty to preside 

advice to over the Senate. It was the time of the great 

South Caro- agitation over the question of the tariff. Cal- 

lina, 1832 i r» o ^ i 

houn wrote a letter to the people oi South 
Carohna in which he told them there would always be a 
conflict between the interests of the North and the South; 



THE UNITED STATES 



237 



that the Southern people who used slave labor to raise 
cotton and tobacco could not have the same interests as 
the Northern people who used free labor to manufacture 
cloth and iron; that the tariff was designed to help the 
Northern states and to hurt the Southern states. He 
therefore declared that the way to protect South CaroHna 
from this unjust law was to declare it null and void so far 
as South Carolina was 
concerned. . 

South Carolina took his 
advice and passed an or- 
dinance of nullification. 
President Jackson threat- 
ened to send troops into 
that state to enforce the 
tariff, and to hang any 
man who shed a drop of 
blood in opposition to the 
laws. He secured the pas- 
sage of a bill by Congress 
known as the Force Bill, 
giving him the power to use 
the army and navy to en- 
force the collection of the tariff. 

But South Carolina was a plucky state and Calhoun 
was a determined leader. It looked as if civil war would 
follow. Henry Clay, however, secured a compromise 
measure by which the tariff was reduced a little every year, 
and South Carolina repealed the ordinance of nullification. 




John C. Calhoun 



238 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

When Clay was told that his compromise measures would 
defeat his ambition to be President of the United States, 
he made the reply, ''I would rather be right than be Presi- 
dent." 

Calhoun was in pubhc hfe for nearly forty years. He 
resigned the office of vice-president in order to become a 
Calhoun as United States senator. With Clay and Web- 
a leader ^^^j. ]^g formed ''the great trio" of senators 

whose wonderful abilities controlled the destinies of the 
country for more than a generation. Calhoun was the 
great leader of the Southern people, the advocate of the 
rights of the states, and a firm behever in preserving the 
institution of slavery. 



THE UNITED STATES 239 

13. MORSE INVENTS THE ELECTRIC TELEGRAPH 

Upon one occasion a number of passengers on board a 
vessel returning from Europe to America were discussing 
electricity. In the company was Samuel F. B. Morse, a 
painter, who had been abroad studying art. One of the 
company remarked, ''I have heard that a current of elec- 
tricity passes over a very long wire almost instantaneously." 
This set Morse to thinking and to planning how an electric 
current might be used to make signals, and by means of wires 
to carry messages over long distances. 

Morse worked on the drawings of an instrimient and 
wrote an alphabet of dots and dashes. Before the ship 
reached New York he had practically invented Morse works 
the telegraph as we know^ it at the present onhisinven- 
day. He became so interested in the idea that 
he painted no more pictures, but gave himself up to making 
a telegraph instrmnent. He worked day and night in an 
attic room in New York, leaving his bench only to get a 
httle food. He was very poor, and his friends thought it 
a great pity for so fine an artist to be wasting his time on so 
fooUsh an idea. 

At last the instrument was made and his friends were 
invited to see it work. He showed them a large coil of 
wire, with an instrimient at one end for sending Testing the 
a message, and a receiver at the other end telegraph 
for taking it. Some of the guests whispered messages to 
Morse. He sent the words over the wire, which were re- 
ceived in dots and dashes on a piece of paper at the other 
end of the wire. The messages were then read by some one 



240 



FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 



mm 




' ^^^^m 



"I COME TO CONGRATULATE YOU" 

who understood the Morse alphabet. 
The guests were greatly astonished and 
dehghted. 

Morse was too poor to build a telegraph 
line without assistance, and so he apphed 
to Congress for thirty thou- 
sand dollars to test his invention. Some of Congress 

melees 3.11 

the members made great sport of the idea appropriation 
and had many jokes at Morse's expense. The 
hour of adjournment of Congress approached and Morse saw 
no chance of getting the appropriation. He left the hall and 
went home in great discouragement. Early next morning 
a young lady, a friend of the inventor, came to him and 
said, ^'Your bill was passed by Congress at the last moment, 
and I come to congratulate you." Morse was greatly 
dehghted, and told the young lady that she should send the 
first message over the wires when the line was completed. 

Morse began to build a line between Washington and 
Baltimore. At first the wires were put in tubes and buried 
in the ground, but that did not work well. They were 
then put on poles, as we see them at the present day. 



THE UNITED STATES 



241 



news by tele- 
graph, 1844 



When twenty-two miles had been finished from Washing- 
ton toward Baltimore, Morse decided to give the people 
a surprise. A convention held in Baltimore jhe first 
had nominated a candidate for President. 
When the convention had acted, a train 
started with the news to Washington. When the train 
reached the telegraph wire 
the news was promptly sent 
on to Washington ahead of 
the train. The passengers 
were much astonished on 
reaching the city to find that 
the news was already one 
or two hours old. 

When the line was finished 
to Baltimore and the day 
came to make the test, Morse 
asked the young lady who had 
brought him word that Con- 
gress had granted him the 
The first money, to send the first message . She wrote the 

message, words from the Bible ''What hath God wrought !" 

Other messages were sent over the wires and 
the great electric telegraph was declared a success. 

Many years afterwards Cyrus W. Field decided to lay 
an electric cable under the Atlantic Ocean, so that messages 
could be sent between Europe and America. The Atlantic 
The wires were protected by gutta percha and c^^i^» ^^^^ 
laid along the ocean bed. Several attempts were made 




Samuel F. B, Morse 



242 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

before a successful cable was laid. At the present day 
millions of miles of telegraph and cable wire connect all 
cities and countries, and the events of each day in all 
parts of the earth are flashed over the wires and are printed 
in the papers. Much of our business depends on the 
telegraph, and we can have the satisfaction of hearing 
from our relatives and friends from any part of the earth 
in a few hours. 

In late years Marconi, an Italian, invented an instru- 
ment for sending messages without the use of wires. This 
Wireless is known as wireless telegraphy. At first the 

telegraphy messages were sent only short distances. Ships 
were equipped with wireless telegraphic instrimaents, im- 
provements were made, and the power was increased until 
messages could be sent and received hundreds of miles from 
land. In this way many Uves have been saved by dis- 
tressed ships calling for aid. Wireless stations of great 
power are built along the coasts and in the large cities of 
the world, so that at the present day messages are easily 
sent across the seas and to distant parts of the earth. 



THE UNITED STATES 



243 



14. TEXAS BECOMES A PART OF THE UNITED STATES 

The hero of the independence of Texas was Sam Houston. 
He was born in Virginia and moved to Tennessee when he 
was thirteen years old. His brothers placed Sam 
him in a trader's store as clerk, but he did not Houston 
like his tame life and ran away to live with the Cherokee 
Indians. The chief adopted him as his son, and made him 
dress in Indian fashion and learn the Indian language. 

During the War of 1812 
Houston was an officer under 
General Jackson in the battle 
of Horseshoe Bend. As he 
was leading his men against 
the Creek Indians a barbed 
arrow struck him in the leg. 
A friend pulled the arrow 
from the wound and the blood 
flowed freely. In spite of 
this Houston remained in the 
battle. He was so weakened 
by wounds and loss of blood 
that he had to be conveyed 
to his mother's home on a litter, several hundred miles 
through the rough country. It took him a long time to 
regain his health. 

Afterwards Houston began the practice of law in Nash- 
ville. He was elected a member of Congress and later on 
became Governor of Tennessee. While he was a candidate 
for reelection he suddenly resigned his office and left the 




Sam Houston 



244 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

state. He went again to the Cherokee Indians, and found 
the old chief who had adopted him as a son. He took up 
Abandons the Hfe and habits of the tribe. He dressed 
public life jjj^^ ^j^^ Indians, spoke their language, and sat on 
the floor of the chief's cabin, eating hominy out of the same 
dish with him and his friends. 

After a year he went to Washington to see his friend 
Andrew Jackson, who was the President of the United 
States, in order to protest against the way the Indian agents 
were treating the red men. He declared the agents were 
swindling the Indians in buying their lands for such trifles 
as a blanket, a flask of powder, or a bottle of whiskey. After 
that the swindling agents were removed and the Indians 
had better treatment. 

Houston now left his Cherokee friends and moved to 
Texas. That great country was a part of Mexico, but 
Houston many of the inhabitants were settlers from the 

moves to United States. The Texans were tired of the 
^^^^ treatment they received from Mexico, and 

finally declared themselves free and independent. This 
brought on war between Texas and Mexico. Sam Houston 
was elected commander-in-chief of the Texas army. 

The most noted event in the war was the capture by a 
large Mexican force of an old mission near San Antonio 
The Massa- Called the Alamo. Inside the fort were 
ere at the fewer than two hundred Texans besieged by a 
Alamo, 1836 ^^j^Q^gg^nd or more Mexicans. The brave com- 
mander answered the demand for surrender by a cannon 
shot. He said, 'T shall never surrender or retreat." After a 



THE UNITED STATES 245 

ten days' siege the Mexicans stormed the fort. So great 
were their numbers that they "tumbled over the walls hke 
sheep." The Texans fought from room to room, using their 
clubbed rifles and bowie knives, so long as there was one 
left aUve. At last the brave defenders were all slain, not 
one being spared. After the fort had fallen five Texans 
who were discovered in hiding were taken out and run 
through with a bayonet. It was a dreadful massacre, and 
fired the hearts of the Texans for revenge. 

In addition to this outrage, the Mexicans had captured 
a number of soldiers at Fort GoUad and taken them prisoners 
of war. After the soldiers had surrendered their arms and 
were expecting to be sent home on parole, the Mexicans 
marched them out of the fort and shot them to death. 

Santa Anna, the Mexican general, paid dearly for his 
cruelty. General Houston pursued him and overtook 
him at the San Jacinto River. The soldiers Battle of San 
went into battle crying, ''Remember the Jacinto, 1836 
Alamo! Remember the Alamo !" The Mexicans fled before 
them and were cut down with great slaughter. Santa Anna 
was captured, over six hundred of his men killed, and the 
independence of Texas was secured. 

Texas became known as the ''Lone Star Repubhc," 
because it had a flag with one star. Sam Houston was the 
first President after its independence had been x^e admis- 
recognized. Texas applied for admission into sion of 
the Union. There were at that time twenty-six ^^^^' 
states in the Union, evenly divided between slave states and 
free states. The free states opposed the admission of Texas 



246 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

on the ground that it increased the number of slave states, 
and already there was bitter opposition to the extension of 
slavery. After eight years of controversy Texas was 
admitted to the Union in 1845. It is the largest state in the 
Unionj and covers more territory than the New England 
states. 



THE UNITED STATES 



24' 



s. When 
s, Mexico 




15. WE ACQUIRE THE PACIFIC SLOPE 
Mexico had never yielded her claim to Texas 
that state became a part of the United State 

took offence^ and the relations — — 

between the two countries 
were by no means friendly. 
The southern part of Texas 
was disputed territory and 
the Mexican troops there soon 
came into conflict with the 
American troops. This 
brought on war between the 
two countries. 

The war with Mexico lasted 
nearly two years. General 
Zachary Taylor drove the 
Mexicans out of the lower 
part of Texas and held that 

territory for the United States. General Winfield Scott 
marched from Vera Cruz to the City of Mexico, ^^r with 
defeating the Mexican army in every engage- Mexico, 
ment and finally capturing the city itself. 
During the war the Mexicans did not win a single battle. 

A treaty of peace was signed by which Mexico gave the 
United States a vast tract of land extending to the Pacific 
Ocean, out of which have been made California and a 
number of other Western states. The Rio Grande was 
recognized as the southern boundary of Texas. The 
United States paid Mexico $15,000,000 and agreed to settle 
S3, 500, 000 worth of Mexican debts due to American citizens. 



Gen. Winfield Scott 



248 



FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 



In the meantime a treaty had been made with England 
(1846) by which the Oregon territory was divided between 
The Oregon that country and the United States. Thus by 
temtory f^ie treaties with Mexico and with England our 

territoiy was extended from the Rocky Mountains to the 
Pacific Ocean. The new territory covered an area of about 
a milHon and a quarter square miles. 



^- ..^- ... Ai^^r-'- 


M»j^ J 


^^'}' 


'1 


?y^-'- ^^ ssa--^ --"^si^^^^^M 


tea^ "^H 


m 




ft^^^^^^^^^^H 


^^^^g^ ., j^^LM 


P?\'^^ 






^^^E-i^^^^M 


itfH 




B^i^iS^Hli^^^M^BMl^^n 


^ffm^^^^m 


^^B 




^^^Bmhl^r^^^]^^, 


^^3S0iSI^^^^3^^^*/'^i!L,-^aig^^mm 


^^E 






^^^^Mji 


^^a 






Bpi^^H!^^ 


^hB 


I^^^J: 




^^^^I^^^^I^IBH 


hh^b 






^^sJbM 


^H 






^SI^HH 


hH 





Sutter's mill and race 

Nine days before the signing of the treaty with Mexico, 
gold was discovered in California. Captain Sutter had 
Discovery of built a f ort where the city of Sacramento now 
goidinCali- stands. Fifty miles above it on a branch 
omia, ^£ ^j^^ American River he was having a sawmiU 

built. One of the men, while watching the water in the 
mill race, observed shining particles in the sand. It 



THE UNITED STATES 



249 



occurred to him that they might be gold. Hastily gather- 
ing as many of the particles as he could, he mounted a horse 
and rode to Sutter's fort. Here he and Sutter examined 
the particles and found that they really were gold. 




Crossing the Great Plains 



In a short time the fact became known. New^s was carried 
to the seacoast and thence to all parts of the world. Gold 
had been discovered in Cahf ornia ! A wild rush x^e ^ush to 
to the gold fields ensued. Everybody began the gold 
digging for gold and stories were told of fortunes ^ ^' 
made in a week. Gold-hunters and settlers hurried overland 
and by sea into California. In a little over a year as many 
as a hundred thousand people moved to the Pacific slope. 
From a place of a few cabins and stores, San Francisco 
sprang into a city of twenty thousand inhabitants. 



250 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

Gold was discovered in other places in the West, and 
crowds of immigrants poured into its vast and fertile plains. 
Long wagon trains crossed the prairies, the women and the 
children riding in the great covered wagons that contained 
the household goods, the men walking and keeping a sharp 
lookout for Indians and wild beasts. Some of these immi- 
grants came from the South, bringing ideas of slavery, 
and some came from the North, bringing ideas of freedom. 
Therefore, in some of the states of the West, when they 
applied for admission to the Union, there were strife and 
bloodshed over the question of slavery. 



THE UNITED STATES 251 

16. THE PROGRESS OF THE COUNTRY 

In 1850 the census showed that the population of the 
United States was twenty- three milHon people. In one 
year three hundred thousand foreigners came ^ . ^. 

•^ ^ ° Immigration 

over to find homes and occupation in the North 
and West. Few of the foreign immigrants went South, 
because free labor did not desire to compete with slave 
labor, and the slaveholders themselves did not encourage 
foreigners to settle among them. 

New York now had a half milhon people; Philadelphia 
had over four hundred thousand, while Baltimore, Boston, 
and New Orleans had over a hundred thousand Growth of 
each. The cities in the West were showing ^^^^^^ 
rapid growth. In 1830 Chicago was a frontier settlement, 
but by 1850 it was a city of thirty thousand inhabitants. 
Milwaukee was now a growing city, and other settlements 
in the West were being formed which in a few years became 
well known and prosperous cities. 

Many of those cities began to take on the splendid 
appearance they have at the present day. The streets 
were paved and Ughted by gas, waterworks and sewerage 
were installed, fire engines were used, horse cars were intro- 
duced, theaters, churches, and tall buildings were erected, 
and parks were laid out, all of which showed the increasing 
wealth and prosperity of the country. 

Manufacturing was the main industry of the Northern 
and Eastern states. Shipbuilding and commerce were 
growing rapidly, so that American-built clipper ships were 
now seen in nearly every port of the world. In the 



252 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

West the industry was mainly agricultural, where great 
crops of wheat and corn and hay were being raised, 

showing that that section was one day to 
n us es o become the main dependence of the country 

for its supply of food. 
In the South cotton-raising was almost the only 'industry 
of the people. The mills of New England and Europe 
were eagerly demanding an unlimited amount of cotton, and 
the Southern planters were as eager to supply it. In 1850 
the cotton crop amounted to two and a half million bales, and 
cotton exports were worth more than all other exports com- 
bined. 

The progress of the countiy made its demand upon the 
inventive genius of the people. In 1832 Cyrus McCormick, 

a native of Virginia, invented a harvesting 
McCormick machine to take the place of the scythe and 
andthehar- rake. Up to that time one man could hardly 

machine ^^^ ^^^ ^^^^ ^P ^^ ^^^^ ^^ grain in a day. 

By the harvesting machine, the same work could 
be done in a half hour. The threshing machine followed 
shortly after, by which as much grain could be threshed 
from the hulls in an hour as a man could do by flails in a 
week. Improved machinery for plowing and cultivating 
the soil simpHfied the labors of the farmer and added to the 
size of his crops. 

Another invention of the period was the sewing machine 
patented by Elias Howe in 1846, which greatly lightened 
the burden of making clothing and buttonholes, stitching 
leather and carpet strips, binding books, and the hundreds of 



THE UNITED STATEvS 253 

other industries in which sewing was used. In 1839 Charles 
Goodyear discovered the process of vulcanizing rubber so 
that it was not subject to the changes of the 
weather. By this discovery the making of over- j^^ ^tions 
shoes, rubber coats, and automobile tires, and 
other articles of rubber goods were made possible. 

All of these inventions were protected by patents in 
the patent office at Washington, so that the inventors alone 
could enjoy the profit from the sales of their products. 
By 1840 there were forty thousand patents issued, and the 
number was increasing at more than a thousand a year. 
At the present time over a million patents have been issued. 

QUESTIONS 

1. What was the condition of the country at the end of the 
Revolution? How had the colonies been bound together through 
the war? What was now needed? When and where was the 
Constitution of the United States framed? What is the Constitu- 
tion? What are the duties of the President? What is the duty 
of Congress? What are the duties of the courts? Name the three 
departments of the government. Who was the first President of 
the United States? When did Washington become the capital 
city? 

2. How was manufacturing done in early days? Why was 
machinery for manufacturing necessary? What is known as the 
Industrial Revolution? To what did the Americans resort? What 
can you say of Samuel Slater? For what was there now a great 
demand? What can you say of cotton-raising in the South at this 
time? Who was Eli Whitney? How did he become interested in 
inventing the cotton gin? When was it invented? What was the 
effect of the invention? 



254 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

3. What can you say of Jefferson as a young man? What 
were some of his accomphshments? What great document did he 
write? What reforms did he introduce into Virginia? Of what 
was he founder? What was the name of his home in Virginia? 
Of what pohtical party was he the leader? In what did he firmly 
believe? Describe the simplicity of his manners. 

4. What can you say of the pirates of Tripoli? How did the 
pirates treat American prisoners and vessels? How did the ruler 
of Tripoli insult an American officer? What accident befell the 
Philadelphia? Relate the exploit of Stephen Decatur. 

5. What was the boundary of our country when Jefferson was 
elected President? When was Louisiana purchased, and for how 
much? What can you say of the unknown West? What two 
men were sent to explore our new possession? Describe the begin- 
ning of their explorations. Describe some of their exploits. 
When did they return? 

6. What was known as ' 'Fulton's Folly" ? What can you say of 
Fulton's inventive genius? What was the name of Fulton's boat? 
Describe the boat. Describe his voyage up the Hudson. What 
other boats were put in use? When was the first voyage of a steam- 
ship across the Atlantic? What can you say of ocean voyages at 
the present time? 

7. What was the cause of the War of 1812? When was war 
declared? How long did it last? Describe the battle between the 
Constitution and the Guerriere. What was the Constitution called? 
Describe the battle between the Chesapeake and the Shannon. 
What were the last words of Captain Lawrence? What was the 
most famous naval battle of the War of 1812? Describe the burn- 
ing of Wash ngton by the British. Describe the writing of the 
''Star Spang ed Banner." 

8. Tell some incident of the young Andrew Jackson. Describe 
his early life in Tennessee. Describe his campaign against the 
Creeks in Alabama. What can you say of Tecumseh? What 
name did Andrew Jackson receive? Describe the battle of New 



THE UNITED STATES 255 

Orleans. What was the result? When and where was the treaty 
of peace signed? 

9. What is known as the Monroe Doctrine? What can you 
say of the Erie Canal? How many people were in the United 
States in 1825? What was the longest and most important of the 
early railroads in America? Describe the early railroads. Tell 
some of the trying experiences of the passengers. 

10. Describe the early life of Henry Clay. What can you say 
of his industry and studiousness? How did he train himse f to be 
an orator? What can you say of Clay as a lawyer? What great 
question was disturbing the country at this time? What is known 
as the Missouri Compromise? What was Clay called? 

11. What can you say of the early life of Daniel Webster? 
What can you say of his college life? Describe his appearance. 
Relate the incident at the laying of the Bunker Hill monument. 
What is a tariff for revenue? What is a tariff for protection? How 
did the different sections of the country differ on the tariff? 
Describe the Hayne- Webster debate. 

12. Describe the early life of John C. Calhoun. What was 
Calhoun's advice to the people of South Carolina? What was the 
Ordinance of Nullification? What did President Jackson resolve 
to do? What did Henry Clay secure? What did Clay say at the 
time? Who constituted the ''great trio"? 

13. Describe the occasion in which Morse invented the electric 
telegraph. Describe the early struggles of Morse. Describe the 
testing of the telegraph. What appropriation was made by 
Congress? Between what cities was the first telegraph line built? 
What was the first news sent by telegraph? What was the first 
message? Describe the laying of the At antic cable. What 
can you say of the wireless telegraph? 

14. Describe the early Hfe of Samuel Houston. Describe his 
life with the Indians. How did he show his friendship for the 
Indians? To what country did Houston move? Describe the 
massacre at the Alamo. How was it avenged? Describe the battle 



256 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

of San Jacinto. When was Texas admitted as a state? What 
controversy arose at the time? 

15. What brought on war between the United States and 
Mexico? How long did it last and what was the result? What 
were some of the provisions of the treaty of peace? What treaty 
was made with England in 1846? Describe the discover^'" of gold 
in Cahfornia. Describe the rush to the gold fields. 

16. What can you say of immigration? What can you say of 
the growth of cities? Describe the industries of the people. 
Describe the industries of the South. Describe the invention of the 
harvesting machine. Who invented the sewing machine? Who 
invented the process of vulcanizing rubber? How are all patents 
protected? 



CHAPTER VI 
HEROES OF THE CIVIL WAR 



1. ABRAHAM LINCOLN 

For a long time the Northern states and the Southern 
states had differed on the subject of slaveholding in the 
South. The people of the South not only desired to keep 
their slaves, but wished to carry them into the West, as 
that territory was opened to the settlers. The people of 
the North were not only opposed to slavery in the Western 
states, but many of them were openly opposed to slavery 
anywhere in the Union. 

AboUtion societies were formed in many places in the 
North for the purpose of freeing the slaves. Runaway 
slaves escaping from the South into the North Kansas 
were often kept in hiding and aided to get ^^^ 
beyond the reach of their pursuers. When the people of the 
territory of Kansas were left to settle the question of 
slavery for themselves, settlers from the North advocating 
no slavery and settlers from the South determined on 
slavery moved in. Both sides were fiercely in earnest, 
and a condition of war existed for several years, during 
which many persons were killed. 

Among the most fanatical of the abohtionists was John 
Brown. He and his sons had engaged actively in the Kansas 

257 



258 



FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 



War. Going to Virginia he with a band of twenty fol- 
lowers seized the arsenal at Harper's Ferry. He then called 
John Brown on the slaves to rise and arm themselves. To 
raid. 1859 ]^^g g^irprise the slaves did not rise, nor did any 
one come to his aid. Brown was captured and hanged 
for inciting an insurrection. This incident is known as the 
'^John Brown Raid." 



^3f9SJf 


BP~ 


■ ^- a 


^p/ ::^^^^PM'- ll 


Fl 




j 


^P^i^fc; . "****^^^^ 


^^mw^^^^^Ml 


^^'^B^W 


imi^m-- W 


'^ .^^^^bB fl 


^^w^^^ ??^H^^B 




t;^-""" ^ 


p 


^^^^^^M/^m^' ^^"^^ ^BBM 


lM:::.i:il 




11 


^^^I^K^^ fli 


m'i 


W 


#8* 


'.^^^'^^HtlHB 


AH 


1 

If /■ :: ^ 


^■*^2 




.«^ 


^ 




*».. :;W 


ll 






l»^l 


-s^ 


i^--* 


""«Sl>*.^". 


^HHI 


1 


--Wm^ 




** - '.-.^^^iMHi' 



Lincoln gettino his education 



It can easily be seen that all this increased the bad feel- 
ing between the North and the South. The South insisted 
that under the Constitution it had a right to hold slaves, 
and that the North should not interfere with that right. 



HEROES OF THE CIVIL WAR 259 

The North insisted that slavery was a great wrong, that 
it should not spread beyond the hmits of the South, and 
indeed that it ought to be altogether aboHshed. 

During this state of feeling Abraham Lincoln, of Ilhnois, 
the candidate of the Repubhcan Party, was elected Presi- 
dent of the United States. 

Abraham Lincoln was born in Kentucky, February 12, 
1809. 'V\lien he was seven years of age his parents moved 
to Indiana. The family was very poor, and 

i.r. . -Ill 1 Early Ufe 

Lmcom spent his young hie m toil and hard- 
ship. From a child he had to do the hard work of a farm 
in the wilderness. From his abihty as a young man to 
swing an axe, clear the forest, and spHt the logs, he was 
called ''the rail spUtter." 

He had but Uttle chance to get an education. He did not 
go to school more than twelve months in all his life. He 
learned to read, however, such books as the 

_ His education 

Bible, Pilgrim's Progress, and iEsop's Fa- 
bles. These books he borrowed from neighbors, often 
walking miles to get something to read. After a hard day's 
work he would sit before the fire and read some book in 
which he was interested. Upon one occasion the rain soaked 
a book he had borrowed, and the owner made him work 
three days to pay for it. 

When he was twenty-one years old he moved to IlUnois, 
walking nearly two hundred miles, driving an ox team, often 
through mud and water. 

When he reached IlUnois he did any kind of work that he 
could find. He cut down trees, and so great was his skill 



260 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

and strength that it was said he could sink an axe deeper 
into a tree than any other man in Ilhnois. He spht rails 
and built fences; he worked on a flatboat down the Missis- 
sippi River, and then clerked in a store. 

He was tall, being six feet four inches high, spare of frame, 
but muscular and in perfect health. He could outrun, out- 
jump, and outwrestle anybody in the neighborhood. He 
was a fine story-teller, and always had a good joke to fit 
every occasion. 

He began to study hard, and soon was well known for his 
shrewdness and ability. He was noted for his wise sayings, 
such as, ''You may fool all the people some of the time, and 
some people all of the time, but you cannot fool all of the 
people all of the time." 

After a while he began to practice law and was sent to the 
legislature. He became noted for his plain, common-sense 
* 'Honest way of speaking, his homely wisdom, and his 

^^®" humor. He was called ''Honest Abe," because 

he always said and did what he thought was right. 

At one time he engaged in a great debate with Stephen 
A. Douglas. Both were candidates for the United States 
Lincoln- Senate. The two men went from town to town, 

Douglas discussing, before large crowds, the subject of 

slavery in the territories. Lincoln was de- 
feated, but his speeches were printed in all the papers, were 
read by everybody, and made him famous. 

Lincoln was the candidate of the RepubHcan Party for 
President, the party whose principles were opposed to 
slavery. He had expressed his sentiments in these words : 



HEROES OF THE CIVIL WAR 



261 



^'A house divided against itself cannot stand. I believe 
this government cannot endure half slave and half free. 
I do not expect the house to fall, but I do expect it will 
cease to be divided. It will become all one thing or all the 
other." 

Lincoln was President 
during the four years of 
Freeing the the Civil War . 
slaves, 1863 During the 

war he issued his famous 
proclamation freeing the 
slaves in the states 
engaged in war against 
the Union. He said : ''My 
paramount object is to 
save the Union. If I 
could save the Union 
without freeing any 
slaves, I would do it. If 
I could save it by freeing 
all of the slaves, I would 
do it. If I could save it 
by freeing some and lea^ - 
ing others alone, I would 
also do that." 

Lincoln was a man of strong convictions and great firmness, 
yet he was gentle, sympathetic, and even tender in his 
dealings with men. He had a melancholy Disposition 
disposition, was deeply oppressed by his respon- °^ Lincoln 
sibilities, and concerned about the welfare of the country. 




Abraham Lincoln 



262 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

After the surrender of the Southern army, Lincoln was 
assassinated in Washington City while seated in a box at a 
Lincoln as- theater. He died the next day. The nation 
sassinated, was thrown into great grief over this most 
April 14, deplorable event, for he was admired, honored, 

1865 

and respected by all people from all sections 
of the country. 



HEROES OF THE CIVIL WAR 263 

2. JEFFERSON DAVIS 

As soon as it became known that Lincoln was elected 
President of the United States, South Carolina passed an 
''ordinance of secession," which meant that The Confed- 
that state withdrew from the Union. In a erate states 
short time ten other Southern states also with- 
drew, making eleven in all. These states united to form a 
separate government, called ''The Confederate States of 
America. '^ The names of the Confederate States are, 
Virginia, North Carolina, South CaroHna, Georgia, Florida, 
Alabama, Mississippi, Tennessee, Arkansas, Louisiana, 
Texas. The first capital of the Confederate States was 
Montgomery, Alabama, but as soon as the war began the 
capital was changed to Richmond, Virginia. 

Jefferson Davis, of Mississippi, was elected President 
of the Confederate States. He was born in Kentucky, 
June 3, 1808, not more than a hundred miles Jefferson 
from the birthplace of Lincoln. He was eight ^^^^^ 
months older than Lincoln. In early life Davis had moved 
to Mississippi and had grown up familiar with slaveholding 
conditions. When he was sixteen years old he went to the 
West Point Military Academy, and was trained to be a 
soldier. He was in the Indian wars of the West, and 
rendered valuable service as a soldier in the war with Mexico. 
He then left the army and became a planter in Mississippi. 

He was elected a member of Congress from in the 
Mississippi, but resigned when the Mexican War Mexican War 
broke out, to lead a regiment of Mississippians into Mexico. 
In this war he was a brave man and a splendid soldier. 



264 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

At the battle of Buena Vista his regiment was attacked 
by a large force of the enemy. His ringing command, 
"Steady, Mississippians ! Steady!" held the soldiers in perfect 
order. Davis drew his troops in shape like the letter V. 
Their fire in this position was so effective that the Mexicans 
quickly retreated. This formation of his troops led General 
Taylor to mention him in his report for "his distinguished 
coolness and gallantry." 

When Franklin Pierce was President, Davis was appointed 
Secretary of War. In this office he introduced better guns 
for the soldiers, improved the tactics of the army, and 
strengthened the defences of the seacoast. 

From the cabinet of President Pierce, Davis went in 1857 

to the Senate to represent Mississippi. Here he remained 

for four years during those stormy debates 

Political life ^ ^ '^ ^ ^ ^J" , . i i , 

when the fate of the Union hung in the balance. 
He was an orator of great powers of persuasion and 
sweetness of temper. He was the champion of the right 
of the Southern people to hold slaves, and of the extension 
of slavery to the states and territories of the West if the 
people there desired to have it. 

The great purpose of President Davis was to preserve 
the rights of the states as guaranteed by the Constitution. 
Purpose and He believed that the Union was an agreement 
opinions of among all the states for certain purposes 
expressed in the Constitution itself, and that 
slaveholding was one of the things that each state had the 
right to decide for itself, and with which the general govern- 
ment had no right to interfere. He maintained that the 



HEROES OF THE CIVIL WAR 



265 



rights of the states were more sacred than the Union itself, 
and that when one section of the country violated the 
Constitution, the other sections were no longer bound by it. 
Davis was President of the Confederate States during 
the four years of the Civil War, as Lincoln was President 
Davis during of the United 
t^^ ^^^ States. He 

lived during these trying 
years in Richmond, Vir- 
ginia, the capital of the 
Confederacy. At the 
close of the war, and 
when the last hope of 
success for the Southern 
army had gone, and the 
Northern soldiers were 
about to capture Rich- 
mond, President Davis 
left the capital and 
traveled southward. He 
was arrested in Georgia, 
held on the charge of 
treason, and thrown into 
prison. His case was 

never brought to trial. After two years he was released 
and retired to his home in Mississippi. Here he spent the 
remainder of his hfe in dignified retirement, dying at the 
age of eighty-one years. 




Jefferson Davis 



266 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

Davis will ever remain dear to the hearts of the South. 
Great as an orator and statesman, steadfast in the belief 
that the cause of his people was just, patient and uncom- 
plaining under misfortune and abuse, he will ever have the 
respect, admiration, and affection of the Southern people. 



HEROES OF THE CIVIL WAR 267 

3. STONEWALL JACKSON 

There were at this time thirty-four states in the Union, 
twenty-three Northern states and eleven Southern states. 
There were twenty-two million people in the condition of 
North; there were nine milHon people in the the North 
South, of w^hich three and a half million were 
slaves. In the North there were large mills for supplying 
everything an army needed, an organized government, an 
army and a navy, all of which the South was without at the 
beginning of the war. But the South raised large crops of 
cotton upon which Northern and foreign mills depended, and 
was to have the advantage of fighting upon its o^tl soil 
and in defence of its own cities. 

The War between the States, or the Civil War, as it is 
generally called, began by the bombardment of Fort Sumter 
in the harbor of Charleston, South Carolina. This fort 
held a garrison of Northern soldiers. A Northern vessel 
had arrived outside the harbor with other troops to add to 
those already in the fort. This was considered by President 
Davis an act of hostihty. The surrender of the fort was 
demanded; the demand was refused, and accordingly 
the fort was fired upon. 

The bombardment lasted thirty-four hours until the 
fort was almost in ruins. After a brave defence the com- 
mander surrendered and Fort Sumter fell into gombard- 
the hands of the Confederacy. The news of mentofFort 
the bombardment and surrender of Fort Simi- ^"™*f ' ,„^, 

Apnl 12, 1861 

ter created intense excitement everywhere. 

President Lincoln called for seventy-five thousand soldiers 



268 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

to carry on the war, and President Davis called for volun- 
teers to resist invasion. The war was begun, and both 
sides prepared in earnest for the deadly conflict. 

Virginia was the main battle ground of the war, and the 
capture of Richmond was one of the main objects of the 
First battle Northern army. The cry was: ''On to Rich- 
of Manassas, mond!" A splendid army marched out of 
•'"^' Washington with banners and music. Crowds 

of people went along in wagons and carriages. A Southern 
army had been gathered to meet the advancing enemy, 
and the two hosts met at Manassas Junction. Then 
occurred the first great battle of the war, known as the 
battle of Manassas or Bull Run. It was a great Confederate 
victory. The Northern troops were driven back ; then they 
began to run, and finally they broke into a disorderly panic 
and rout, many of them not stopping until they were safe 
in Washington City. 

At one time in the battle General Thomas J. Jackson 
had rallied his troops on a hill and was being fiercely at- 
stonewaii tacked. An officer cried out, ''General, they 
Jackson ^y^ beating us back!" "Then, sir," said Jack- 

son, "we will give them the bayonet." Jackson and his 
men stood firm. Another Confederate officer pointing to 
him called out to his own troops, "There stands Jackson 
like a stone wall!" From that time he was known as 
Stonewall Jackson. 

Jackson was born at Clarksburg, in what is now West 
Virginia, January 21, 1824. He was brought up on a farm 
in his native state. When he was eighteen years old, 



HEROES OF THE CIVIL WAR 269 

dressed in a plain homespun suit, and carrying his clothes 
in a saddlebag, he went to Washington and asked to be 
made a cadet at West Point. He received the ^ , ,.^ 

Early life 

appointment and went at once to the mintary 
academy. He was an awkward, ungainly, quiet, good- 
natured country boy, of whom his companions at first 
made sport, but whom afterwards they treated with great 
respect. 

He was very ambitious. He wrote a book of rules for his 
own guidance in conduct, dress, manners, study, and such 
things. One of these rules was, ''You may be whatsoever 
you resolve to be." 

He served in the war with Mexico, winning distinction 
and promotion by his bravery. He seemed not to know 
what fear was, and held any position of danger until ordered 
to retreat. His great ambition was to do his full duty as a 
man and a soldier without fear. 

He early became a religious man, and was noted for his 
great piety. He taught in the Sunday school, and even 
gathered the slaves of his town together 
every Sunday afternoon and taught them the j^^^^.^^ 
truths of the Bible. Before going into battle 
it was his habit always to go off to a quiet place and 
pray. His servant used to say he could tell the night 
before there was to be a battle by the length of his master's 
prayers. 

He never used coffee, tobacco, nor intoxicating drinks of 
any kind. Often he went all winter in the Virginia moun- 
tains without an overcoat, saying he ''did not wish to give 



270 



FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 



way to the cold." Once when told by his surgeon that he 
needed a Httle brandy, he rephed, ''I like it too well, that 
is the reason I never take it. I am more afraid of it than 
of Federal bullets." 

His soldiers were devoted to him, and were willing to 
follow him into any danger, and cheerfully obeyed his 




Last meeting of Lee and Jackson 



orders. They affectionately gave him the name of ''Old 
Jack." Under his command they did so much marching 
that they were called ''foot cavalry." Jackson always 
shared the hardships of his men. On one occasion when 
his brigade was worn out with marching, he said, "Let the 
poor fellows sleep. I will guard the camp myself." Ac- 
cordingly he acted as sentinel during the night while his 
tired men took their rest. 



HEROES OF THE CIVIL WAR 271 

Jackson was one of the greatest soldiers of the war. He 
was a military genius who inspired liis troops with deep 
affection and confidence. If Jackson was in The Valley 
command they felt sure of victory. At one Campaign, 
time during the war when the Northern army 
was pressing on Richmond, Jackson with fifteen thousand 
men made a remarkable campaign in the Shenandoah 
valley. He marched his little army over four hundred 
miles in forty days, defeated in succession four armies sent 
against him, came so near Washington as to throw that 
city into the greatest alarm, and captured or killed seven 
thousand of the enemy's forces. This is known as Jack- 
son's Valley Campaign, and is considered one of the greatest 
feats in miUtary history. 

After the war had been in progress for two years, at the 
battle of Chancellors ville, Jackson had ridden out in front 
of his own troops to reconnoiter the position of 
the enemy. When he returned it was nearly Jackson 
dark. His own men, thinking Jackson's party 
to be a body of Northern cavalry, fired upon them. Jackson 
fell from his horse mortally wounded. He died in a few 
days, saying, 'Tet us cross over the river and rest under the 
shade of the trees." When Lee heard that Jackson was dead, 
he wept and said, ''I have indeed lost my right arm." 



272 



FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 




General George B. 
McClellan 



4. ROBERT E. LEE 

The year after the battle of Manassas the Northern 
army, under the command of General George B. McClellan, 
attempted to capture Richmond in 
the campaign known as the Penin- 
sular Campaign. McClellan came 
within ten miles of Richmond — near 
enough to see the smoke from the 
chimneys — but in a series of battles 
lasting a week he was compelled 
to abandon his purpose. 

"WTiile this campaign was in prog- 
ress, Robert E. Lee was made com- 
mander-in-chief of the Confederate 
army. 
Lee was born in Virginia, January 19, 1807. He was the 
son of General Henry Lee, a hero of the Revolution, who was 
known as ''Light Horse Harry." When he was 
eighteen years old he went to West Point, where 
he stayed for four years. During all that time he received 
no bad marks or demerits. His clothes were always in order, 
his gun bright, his lessons well prepared. So faithful was 
he in his duties as a student that he graduated second in 
his class. 

During the Mexican War Lee served as an engineer under 
General Scott. It was his business to build bridges, lay out 
roads, construct fortifications, and perform other duties of 
that sort. General Scott said that Lee was the best soldier 
he ever saw, and that a large part of his own success in 



Early life 



HEROES OF THE CIVIL WAR 273 

Mexico was due to Lee's skill as an engineer. In after 
years General Scott said of him, ''If I knew that a battle was 
to be fought for my country, and the President were to say 
to me, 'Scott, who shall be commander?' I would say, 
'Robert E. Lee; nobody but Robert E. Lee.' " 

When the war came on, Lee was a colonel in the United 
States army. He was offered the chief command of the 
Union armies. To this offer he rephed, "If I Goes with 
owned the four miUion slaves in the South, I Virginia 
would give them all up to save the Union; but how can I 
draw my sword upon Virginia, my native state?" Accord- 
ingly Lee, like a great many other men, went with his state. 

He was a major-general of the Virginia troops before he 
took command of the entire Southern army. 

General Lee was now fifty-four years old. He was a grave, 
dignified, and noble-looking man, of military bearing. His 
hair and beard were turning gray. He was character 
erect and vigorous, and rode his famous white ^^ habits 
horse "Traveler" with grace and ease. He was the idol of 
his soldiers, who affectionately called him "Marse Robert." 
From the time he assumed command of the Southern army 
he showed such a mastery of the details of war, such a 
genius for handling troops and using them effectively in 
battle, that he is recognized as one of the world's greatest 
generals. 

Lee, like many other great men, was gentle, generous, and 
good. It was a saying of his that duty was the sublimest 
word in the language. He never used tobacco nor any 
intoxicating liquors. He felt kindly towards the Union 



274 



FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 



army, and spoke generously of their valor as soldiers. He 
rebuked one of his officers who said he wished to kill all the 
enemy, by remarking, ''I would rather they go home and 



^^^^^i^. 




^^^^^■Hi^P '^IS 


w 


m, 


I'm 

is* 



General Robert E. Lee 



leave us to do the same." He told a Southern mother after 
the war, ''Do not train up your children to be foes of the 
United States Government. We are one country now. 
Bring them up Americans.^' 



HEROES OF THE CIVIL WAR 275 

When Lee took command of the Southern army he 
showed his military genius by using his smaller forces 
to hold in check the great armies sent against Defeats the 
him. General John Pope was defeated in the Northern 
second battle of Manassas, and Lee invaded ^''°"®^ 
Maryland. A great battle was fought near Sharpsburg, 
on Antietam Creek, which was so undecided that Lee 
returned to Virginia. General A. E. Burnside was next 
sent out with an army, which Lee completely routed at 
Fredericksburg. General Joseph Hooker likewise met 
defeat at the battle of Chancellorsville. Lee had proved 
himself more than a match for the Northern generals. 

After the war had been going on for two years the great 
battle of Gettysburg was fought. It was the greatest 
battle of the Civil War, and was the turning xhe battle of 
point of the fortunes of the Southern army in Gettysburg, 
the East. The battle was fought three days in J""^^' ^^^^ 
succession. On the last day occurred the famous charge of 
General Pickett against the Northern breastworks. The 
Southern troops — veterans by this time — moved across a 
valley a mile wide, charged a hill where the enemy was 
established, and with desperate courage tried to capture 
their guns. The slaughter of men was dreadful. The roar 
of cannon, the rattle of musketry, the smoke of battle, and 
the cries of wounded men made a scene long to be remem- 
bered. 

In spite of these heroic efforts the Confederate troops 
were defeated, and Lee retired across the Potomac into 
Virginia. The army was worn out with much fighting. 



276 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

There were no more troops to take the places of the dead. 
Nearly every man in the South who could bear arms had 
Suffering of heeii enUsted for the war. Supphes of all kinds 
the Southern were scarce. The soldiers were poorly paid 
^^^^ and badly clothed. From this time it was a 

question of wearing out in face of a great army whose ranks 
could easily be filled, and who were supplied with everything 
needed for successful warfare. 

The Northern war vessels blockaded the Southern ports, 
so that no supplies could be brought from foreign countries. 
This brought on a scarcity of medicine, salt, ammunition, 
guns, and army supphes. The Southern people bravely 
endured their hardships. The women knitted socks for the 
soldiers, cut up their curtains, and wove their carpets into 
supphes for the army. 



HEROES OF THE CIVIL WAR 



277 



5. ULYSSES S. GRANT 

The war plan of the North was first to capture Richmond 
and drive the Confederates out of Virginia; second, to get 
control of the Mississippi River; third, to march an army 
through the heart of the South and completely enfold the 
Confederacy within the toils of two great armies. 

Accordingly, while the war was going on in Virginia, a 
campaign was also in progress in the West. Early in the 

war the Northern 
f:Zt::^ -rmy captured Fort 
Henry, on the Tennes- 
see River, and Fort Donelson, on 
the Cimiberland River. Thus 
Kentucky and Tennessee fell into 
the hands of the Northern army. 
Then followed the great battle of 
Shiloh on the line between Mis- 
sissippi and Tennessee in which the 
Confederate general, Albert Sidney 
Johnston, was killed, and the 
Southern army was driven back 
into Mississippi. Shortly after- 
wards New Orleans was captured by a Northern fleet under 
command of Admiral Farragut. Later on Farragut entered 
Mobile Bay and closed that port. In a campaign of a few 
months the Northern army had gained control of the 
Mississippi with the exception of Port Hudson and Vicksburg. 

General Ulysses S. Grant was placed in command of the 
Union forces in the West. He set vigorously to work to 




Copyright by Underwood & 
Underzvood, N. Y. 

Admiral D. G. Farragut 



278 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

besiege Vicksburg. The city was bombarded with shells 
until the terrified inhabitants were driven to caves in the 
Surrender of hillsides and into the cellars of houses for pro- 
Vicksburg, tection. Food gave out and starvation drove 
the people to eating mule meat at a dollar a 
pound. Finally Vicksburg surrendered on the day that Lee 
began his retreat from Gettysburg. 

The surrender of Vicksburg was the turning point of the 
war in the West. The Mississippi was now entirely under 
control of the North, and all supplies from the West were 
completely cut off from the Southern army. 

In March, 1864, Grant was made commander-in-chief 
of all the forces of the United States, with the rank of lieu- 
tenant-general. 

He was born in a log cabin, April 27, 1822, at Point Pleas- 
ant, Ohio. His father was a tanner as well as a farmer. 
Early life and Grant worked on the farm up to the time he 
education ^^g seventeen years of age, going to school a 
part of the year. His father desired him to be a soldier, 
and sent him to the West Point Military Academy, but 
Grant had no taste for mihtary hfe, and spent most of 
his time in reading. He did well in mathematics, however. 
He was considered the best horseman in the Academy. 
Soon after he graduated, the war with Mexico broke out. 
Grant went to the field of action. In all the engagements 
during that war, he behaved with gallantry, showing himself 
to be a brave man and an able soldier. 

Four years after the Mexican War, Grant, now thirty-two 
years old, left the army and began to farm in Missouri. He 



HEROES OF THE CIVIL WAR 



279 



worked very hard, never losing a day on account of the 
weather. He even loaded the wagons with wood which 
he took to town for sale. He gave up farming Hardships 
after a few years' struggle against bad health and failures 
and poor crops. During all the time he kept up his courage, 




Copyright by Underzvood & Underwood. N. Y. 

General Ulysses S. Grant 



however, and showed the strength of his character by hard 
work and unfailing cheerfulness. 

He next went into the real estate business, but with no 
greater success than had attended his farming. In 1860 



280 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

he moved to Galena, Illinois, and took a position as clerk in 
his father's leather store. Here the opening of the war 
found him. 

When President Lincoln called for volunteers to enter the 
service of the Union, Grant enlisted and was soon made a 
brigadier-general. He was thirty-eight years of age when 
he entered upon the great career that was to bring him fame 
and honors. 

General Grant was a brave and determined leader. He 
was patient in waiting and courageous in endurance. He 
Character as never counted the cost, nor considered any 
a soldier obstacle too great to be overcome. He matured 

his plans carefully, and carried them out by weight of 
numbers. He believed in sheer strength of men and arms. 
This made him in the end a successful leader. 

He had all the fine quahties of a soldier. He was noble- 
minded and generous. His fame as the great leader of the 
Federal armies to their final victory is as enduring as the 
history of the war itself. 

Grant, took active charge of the campaign in Virginia. 
Here he faced Lee in many hard-fought battles. With an 
Grant and army of 120,000 men he forced Lee back in spite 
Lee in vir- of the loss of thousands of men. He said he ''in- 
^*"^^ tended to fight it out on this line if it took all 

summer. '^ General Lee's army grew smaller and weaker, and 
Grant's troops pressed him nearer and nearer to Richmond. 
The end of the war was not far off. In the meantime the 
third part of the war plan of the North was being carried 
out in the South, of which we shall study in the next lesson. 



HEROES OF THE CIVIL WAR 



281 



6. THE END OF THE WAR 

We are now to see how the war was brought to a close. 
After the surrender of Vicksburg the Northern army marched 
across Tennessee. The Southern army retired to Chat- 
tanooga. At Chickamauga a desperate battle was fought, 
after which the Southern army withdrew into Georgia. 
General WilHam T. Sherman took command of the Northern 
army in the West. General Grant, in Virginia, directed 
him to march into Georgia 
and capture Atlanta. 

With anarmy of a hundred 
thousand men he started on 

his campaign 

through the 

Confederacy, 

carrying out 
the third part of the war 
plan of the North. Sher- 
man was opposed by 
Joseph E. Johnston, the 
Confederate general. From 
Chattanooga to Atlanta 
there was fighting con- 
stantly for two months. At last Sherman reached Atlanta, 
captured that city, and almost destroyed it by fire. 

In the meantime General Hood had succeeded Johnston 
in command of the Southern army. Hood took his forces 
into Tennessee, where his army was broken in pieces in 
the battles around Nashville. This left Shemian without 



Sherman 

captures 

Atlanta, 

September, 

1864 




Gen. Joseph E. Johnston 



282 



FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 



opposition to continue his '^March to the Sea/' With an 
army of sixty thousand men he started for Savannah, his 
"The March troops Hving on the country as they moved, 
to the Sea" They tore up the raihoads in their path, burning 
the ties and wrapping the heated rails around the trunks of 
trees. They burned gin houses and cotton crops, killed 
cows, hogs, sheep, and, in fact, made a track of desolation 

forty miles wide through the 
heart of Georgia. 

Savannah was captured, and 
Sherman turned northward, 
marching through South Caro- 
lina and North Carolina on his 
way to unite his forces with 
Grant in Virginia. The city 
of Columbia in South Carolina 
was burned by Northern 
soldiers and by ^'bummers'' 
who followed the army in 
great numbers. 

In the meantime General 
Grant had forced General Lee 
back upon Richmond. The Southern army was reduced 
to a mere handful of ragged and starved men, and Richmond 
The surren- ^^'^^^ ^ot be defended longer. Lee's Hues were 
der of Gen- broken, and President Davis and his cabinet 
erai Lee, j^f^ Richmond. It was useless to continue the 

April 9, 1865 t ^ 

struggle. Grant and Lee met by appointment 
at a farmhouse near Appomattox Court House and agreed 
on terms of surrender. Lee's soldiers laid down their 




Gen. William T, Sherman 



HEROES OF THE CIVIL WAR 283 

arms and agreed not to take them up again during 
the war. 

General Grant was a generous and manly foe. He ordered 
the Confederate soldiers to be supplied with food from 
his own stores, and gave each man his horse or mule to take 
home with him to use in the ^ ^spring plowing/' WTien his 
owTi soldiers desired to fire a salute in honor of the surrender 




Sherman marching through Georgia 

he stopped them, saying it was not right to exult in the down- 
fall of an enemy. 

After a few weeks all the Southern armies surrendered, 
and the great war was over. The soldiers on both sides 
returned to their homes and engaged in peaceful pursuits. 
Everybody was glad that the struggle was ended and the 
killing of brave men would go on no longer. The war 
had cost vast sums of money, at one time rising on the 



284 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

Northern side to three miUion dollars a day. Over six 
hundred thousand men had been killed in battle or had 
died of wounds and disease in hospitals. 

The war settled the question of secession. Our country 
is to be an unbroken union of states. We shall remain 
What the one nation, under one government, and be a 

war settled united people henceforth. The war also set- 
tled the question of slavery. The negroes were free. They 
have taken their places as citizens of our common country, 
and are gradually coming to an understanding of their 
opportunities and responsibilities. 

QUESTIONS 

1. How did the people of the North and the South differ on the 
subject of slaveholding? What can you say of abolition societies? 
What were the conditions in Kansas? Describe the John Brown 
raid. Describe the early life of Abraham Lincoln. What education 
did he receive? Describe the debate between Lincoln and Doug- 
las. What office did Lincoln hold during the Civil War? What did 
he say about freeing the slaves? When and where was Lincoln 
assassinated? 

2. Name the Confederate States of America. Who was Presi- 
dent of the Confederate States? Describe the early life of Jeffer- 
son Davis. Describe his part in the Mexican War. What can 
you say of his political life before the war? Of what was he the 
champion? In what did President Davis believe? Describe his 
life during the war. Describe his last days. 

3. What was the difference between the North and the South 
at the beginning of the war? How did the War between the States 
begin? Describe the bombardment of Fort Sumter. Describe the 
first battle of Manassas. How did Stonewall Jackson get his 



HEROES OF THE CIVIL WAR 285 

name? Describe the early life of Stonewall Jackson. What can 
you ssiv of his character and habits? How did he treat his soldiers? 
Describe the death of Jackson. 

4. Who was made commander-in-chief of the Confederate 
army? Describe the early life of General Lee. What part did he 
play in the Mexican War? What did General Scott say of him? 
Why did he go with Virginia? What can you say of his character 
and habits? In what great battles was he engaged? Describe the 
battle of Gettysburg. Describe the sufferings of the Southern 
army. 

5. What was the war plan of the North? What was the result 
of the campaigns in the West? Describe the siege and surrender of 
Vicksburg. Who was made commander-in-chief of all the forces of 
the United States? Describe the early life and education of 
General Grant. Describe his hardships and failures. Describe his 
character as a soldier. Describe the campaigns of Grant and Lee 
in Virginia. 

6. What campaign did General Sherman undertake? What 
was the fate of Atlanta? Describe the *'March to the Sea." When 
and where did General Lee surrender? How did General Grant 
show his generosity? What questions were settled by the war? 



CHAPTER VII 
A REUNITED PEOPLE 



1. AFTER THE WAR 

Now that the war was over the general government set 
about reconstructing the Southern states. Each state 
P _ before it was allowed to reenter the Union was 

tion of the required to ratify certain amendments to the 
Southern Constitution. The thirteenth amendment 

states 1 T 1 1 1 • n 1 

abolished slavery m all the states and terri- 
tories. The fourteenth amendment made the negroes 
citizens and gave them the protection of the law. The 
fifteenth amendment gave the negroes the right to vote. 
It was several years before all the Southern states agreed to 
these amendments, but finally they all agreed to them, and 
the union of the states was restored. 

The era of reconstruction of the South was a sad one. 
The states that were out of the Union were placed under 
Carpetbag- military rule, and many of the best white people 
gers in the in the South were not allowed to vote or hold 

office. Adventurers called '^carpetbaggers'* 
flocked into the South, deceived the negroes with all kinds of 
promises, and aided worthless and dishonest persons to 
secure office. Even the negroes, who a few years before 
were working in the fields, were made judges and members of 



A REUNITED PEOPLE 287 

the legislature, chosen for such offices because they could 
be used as tools by the carpetbaggers. 

To protect themselves against evil white men and negroes 
there was organized in the South a secret society known as 
the Ku-Klux Klan. When the Ku-Klux rode the mem- 
bers were masked, and they spread terror among the negroes. 
The fear of this society held the vicious negroes in check, 
and drove many evil-doers out of the South. 

While this condition of things lasted, a bitter quarrel was 
going on between Andrew Johnson, President of the United 
States, and Congress. President Johnson and 
Congress had very different ideas about recon- j^nTof ~ 
structing the Southern states. The quarrel President 
finally led to the impeachment of the President Johnson, 
and his trial by the Senate. It was the first 
time in the history of our country that a President had been 
impeached, and the trial, which lasted two months, excited 
deep interest. On the day the votes were counted it was 
found that Johnson, by a majority of one vote, was declared 
not guilty. 

iVfter the Southern states had been restored to the Union, 
the people of the South set bravely to work to build up their 
wasted fortunes. 

Under free labor, which the South has foimd to be better 
than slave labor, the farms are not so large, but they are 
cultivated with more intelligence and with less Progress of 
waste. The cotton crop is now twelve to ^^ s®"*^ 
fourteen miUion bales a year, which is about three- 
fourths of all the cotton grown in the world. The 



288 



FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 



mills of New England and of all foreign countries depend 
largely upon the cotton crop of the South. 

Before the war there were few if any cotton mills in the 
South; nearly all cotton manufacturing was done in the 
North. Of late years, however, there has been a rapid 
increase in the number of cotton mills, until now there are 
hundreds of such mills and every year adds to the number. 




Copyright by Underwood & Underwood. N. Y. 

Scene in a cotton field 



The coal fields of the South have become very valuable. 
Great deposits of soft coal he in Alabama and Tennessee 
Coal fields of and the neighboring states, enough to supply 
the South ^]^g world for hundreds of years. The iron 
industry has also grown rapidly, especially near the coal 
fields. Iron mines in Alabama produce great quantities of 



A REUNITED PEOPLE 289 

ore, and the foundries turn it into pig iron, which is sent 
to all parts of the world, to be made into finished products. 

Crude oil has been found in Texas and Louisiana in such 
quantity that the country is largely dependent upon the oil 
wells of these states. New fields are being crude oil 
opened constantly, even in other states, and and lumber 
great fortunes are being made out of this new industry. 
There are fifty milHon acres of hardwood and one hundred 
and fifty million acres of pine forests in the South that call 
for sawmills, and lumber mills, and other industries. The 
South has about one-third the forest area of the entire 
country. 

In addition to raising cotton the people of the South 
are turning their attention to the cultivation of fruits 
and vegetables. The peach orchards of Geor- Fruits and 
gia and other Southern states cover thousands vegetables 
of acres, bearing the finest fruits, which are carried in 
refrigerator cars to all the markets of the North and West. 
The production of oranges, melons, and vegetables is in- 
creasing rapidly, so that the fruit and vegetable crop of the 
South is beginning to rival in value the cotton crop itself. 



290 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

2. PROGRESS OF THE COUNTRY 

Our country has made great progress since the close of the 

Civil War. While Andrew Jackson was President the 

territory of Alaska was purchased from Russia 

Purchase of ^^^ $7^200,000. It was not considered a bar- 
Alaska, 1867 ^ 

gain at the time, for the land was thought to 

be only a dreary, ice-bound region where no one could be 

comfortable and where nothing was produced. Since then 

the gold of the Klondike and the seal fisheries have made 

Alaska a very valuable addition to our territory. Alaska 

is twice the size of Texas, and about one-sixth as large as the 

rest of the United States. 

Our Western states and cities have grown wonderfully 
in population and wealth. Chicago, which began as a 
Progress of frontier fort in 1830, and remained for ten 
the West years a small town, has grown into a great city 

of over two million inhabitants. Kansas City, which was 
not even begun in 1850, now has nearly four hundred thou- 
sand people. Denver was a mining camp when the Civil 
War began, but now it has about three hundred thousand 
inhabitants. Many places that were not known fifty years 
ago are now large and flourishing cities. 

At one time the mail was carried across the prairies by 
the ^'pony express," and passengers went by stagecoach, 
but since the building of the great Pacific railroads hun- 
dreds of thousands passengers travel to the West with every 
comfort. Vast fields of wheat and corn are planted; great 
herds of cattle, sheep, and hogs are raised on the ranches, 
and the regions that were once the homes of the Indians and 



A REUNITED PEOPLE 291 

the range of the buffalo are now the abode of a prosperous 
people. 

The Indians have given way to the advance of civilization. 
Once they ranged the plains free and wild as the buffaloes 
themselves, but now they are confined to a The Indians 
special territory where they are under the pro- °^ *^® ^®^* 
tection and care of the government. There are now about 
two hundred and fifty thousand Indians living on reserva- 
tions, where they dwell peaceably in their own houses and 
attend quietly to their own affairs. 

Inventions have kept pace with our industries. We have 
already seen that America contributed the cotton gin, the 
steamboat, and the electric telegraph to human 
progress. In addition to these we might 
mention the iron-clad war vessel invented by Ericsson, the 
reaper and harvester invented by McCormick, the sewing 
machine invented by Howe, the sleeping car invented by 
Pullman, as well as such inventions as the revolving printing 
press, the typewriter, and hundreds of others. 

Thomas A. Edison is probably the greatest of all living 
inventors. It is to him we owe the electric light, the electric 
car, the phonograph, the moving-picture machine, and 
many other electrical and mechanical inventions. 

One day when Edison was a young man he entered a 
telegraph office in Boston to begin work. He was poorly 
dressed and looked as if he knew nothing about Thomas A. 
his business. The operators smiled at his Edison 
appearance, but he was told to take a seat and receive a 
message that was coming in from New York. Edison took 



292 



FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 



his place and began to write the message. For four hours 
and a half the message continued. The operator in New 
York sent it faster and faster, but Edison never complained 
of the speed. At the end of the message the operator asked 
over the wire, "Who are you?" The answer was, "Thomas 




Copyright by Underwood & Underwood, N. Y. 

Traction plowing 



Edison." The operator said, "You are the first man that 
could ever take me at my fastest, and the only one I ever met 
that could sit at the other end of my wire for more than 
two hours and a half. I am proud to know you." 



A REUNITED PEOPLE 



293 




Edison has been a tireless worker. It is said that at one 
time he worked sixty hours on an invention without rest 
of any kind. Often he said that 
he owxd his success to the fact 
that he ^^never looked at the 
clock." He has a splendid 
laboratory at Menlo Park, New 
Jersey, in which he has done so 
many wonderful things that people 
have come to call him ^Hhe wizard 
of Menlo Park." 

Another great American in^xn- 
tion is the telephone. It was in- 
The vented by Alexander 

telephone Graham Bell. He was 
a teacher of the deaf and dumb, 
and while experimenting with the ^dbration of sound he 
unexpectedly discovered how sound could be reproduced by 
electricity at the end of a long wire , His first instrument was 
used to reproduce in the attic of his house musical notes 
made in the cellar. The telephone was first exhibited at the 
Centennial Exhibition in Philadelphia, where it attracted 
much attention. Improvements were rapidly made, and the 
telephone is now widely used in the homes and business 
houses of the people. Our large cities are connected by 
long-distance telephones, so that one can talk with his 
friends hundreds of miles away in distant parts of the coun- 
try. 



Copyright by Underwood & 
Underwood, N. Y. 

Thomas A. Edison 



294 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

The development of the automobile is distinctly an 
American industry. Twenty-five years ago an automobile 
Automobile was almost unknown. In 1891, in an automo- 
industry |^jjg j.^^^ '^^ Chicago, over a course of ninety 

miles, it took the winning car nearly nine hours to make the 
distance. It had to stop ten times for repairs and fuel, and 
used ice to keep the engine cool. 

In 1893 Henry Ford made his first car and used it on the 
streets of Detroit. It w^as so queer in appearance that it 
caused much amusement. Today the great Ford Motor 
Company employs thousands of workmen and turns out 
many hundreds of cars a day that are sold everywhere in 
the world. 

The airplane has been developed mainly through the 
genius of two brothers, Orville and Wilbur Wright, of 
The air- Dayton, Ohio. For many years they worked 

plane upon a heavier-than-air flying machine, until 

in 1904 they succeeded in flying three miles. Longer flights 
were made afterwards, until at last the flying machine 
was declared a success. A height of five or six miles, a 
distance of a thousand miles and a speed of over a hundred 
miles an hour are no uncommon occurrence. The Atlantic 
Ocean has been crossed by an airplane, and transcontinental 
flights are easily possible. 



A REUNITED PEOPLE 



295 



3. THE WAR WITH SPAIN 
General Grant succeeded Andrew Johnson as President. 
It was during his term of office that the great fire occurred 
in Chicago, destroying a large portion of that city, and that 




Copyright by Underzvood & Underwood, N. Y. 
Grover Cleveland 



the Centennial Exposition was held at Philadelphia, cele- 
brating the one hundredth anniversary of the Declaration of 
Independence. 



296 



FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 



Grant was succeeded by Rutherford B. Hayes. Then 
followed James A. Garfield, who was assassinated by a 
disappointed office-seeker. Chester A. Arthur, the Vice- 
President, became President. After Arthur came Grover 




Copyright by International Film Co., Chicago 
William McKinley 



Cleveland, who was followed by Benjamin Harrison. 
Cleveland was elected a second time, and then WilUam 
McKinley became President. 



A REUNITED PEOPLE 297 

While McKinley was President the war with Spain 
occiirred. The island of Cuba was a Spanish possession and 
was in rebelHon against the hard rule of Spain. Spanish 
Spanish officials oppressed the people of misrule in 
Cuba by heavy taxes, by cruel and unjust 
treatment, and by general misrule of that beautiful island, 
which the Cubans themselves were unable to resent on 
accomit of their weakness and poverty. Sympathy for 
Cuba was freely expressed in America and our government 
looked on impatiently at the growing injustice to the people 
of that island. 

One night in 1898 one of our battleships, the Maine, 
lying in the harbor of Havana was blown up by an explo- 
sion and nearly three hundred of those on sinking of 
board lost their fives. It was a terrible disas- *^® "Maine" 
ter, and many persons in the United States thought it had 
been caused by order of the Spanish government. In a 
short while the sympathy of the people for the Cubans, 
as weU as the indignation over the destruction of the Maine, 
demanded some action on the part of our government. 

Congress passed a resolution authorizing the President 
to use the army and navy of the United States to compel 
Spain to give up her authority in Cuba. This was the 
same as a declaration of war, and President McKinley 
called for a hundred and twenty-five thousand soldiers to 
volunteer for the service. 

Commodore George Dewey was ordered to attack Manila, 
the capital of the Phifippine Islands, then a Spanish pos- 
session. Saifing into the Bay of Manila at night he 



298 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

slipped past the shore batteries of the enemy, and at day- 
break began an attack upon the Spanish fleet. The soldiers 

„ ^, , and sailors raised the cry, '^Remember the 

Battle of ^ 

Manila Bay, MaineF^ The battle lasted for two hours and 
April 30, then the American vessels drew off for breakfast 

1898 

and for a short rest. In a few hours the battle 
was renewed, and after an hour the ships of the enemy 
were completely destroyed, or were at the mercy of Dewey 
and his fleet. Not an American ship was lost, nor was a 
single American soldier killed in the battle. Manila then 
fell into the hands of Commodore Dewey and the war in the 
East was ended. 

In the meanwhile an American fleet under Captain 
Sampson and Commodore Schley was blocking the harbor 
Lieutenant of Santiago de Cuba. Inside was the Spanish 
Hobson fleet, commanded by Admiral Cervera, seeking 

for a chance to escape. In order to obstruct the harbor. 
Lieutenant Hobson, of Alabama, with a few companions, 
sank a coal ship in the channel. It was a daring deed, 
especially as the men were in the full face of the enemy's 
guns. Hobson and his crew escaped to the Spanish vessels 
and surrendered as prisoners of war. 

An army was now landed near Santiago, and the capture 
of the city was undertaken. After several battles General 
Destruction Shafter, the American general, captured the 
of Cervera's heights overlooking Santiago, from which he 
fleet, July 3, could easily shell the city and the ships in the 
harbor. Seeing his danger. Admiral Cervera 
made a dash for liberty. His vessels, however, were easily 



A REUNITED PEOPLE 299 

overtaken and destroyed by the American fleet and he 
himself was made prisoner. Santiago surrendered and the 
war ended. 

By the treaty with Spain we came into possession of the 
PhiHppine Islands, Porto Rico, and the island of Guam 
in the Pacific Ocean, and agreed to pay Spain End of the 
twenty milUon dollars. Cuba was declared ^^ 
free and independent, and the Spanish rule in the West 
Indies came to an end. 



300 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

4. RECENT EVENTS 
Soon after the close of the war with Spain President 
McKinley was assassinated while attending an exposition 
Assassination at Buffalo. He was shaking hands with his 
of McKinley friends when an assassin shot him with a 
revolver concealed in a handkerchief. After Hngering a 




Copyright by Underzvood & Underwood, N. Y. 
Theodore Roosevelt 



week, he died, the third martyr President, mourned by the 
entire nation. He was succeeded by Theodore Roosevelt, 
the Vice-President. 



A REUNITED PEOPLE 



301 



During Roosevelt's administration occurred the war 
between Russia and Japan. The war lasted many months, 




Copyright by Undenvood & Underwood, N. Y. 
William H. Taft 

in which several great battles were fought, many lives were 
lost, and much property was destroyed. President Roose- 
velt addressed a note to each of the warring ^^j. between 
countries offering his services as peacemaker, Russia and 
and suggesting that a conference be held ^^^^ 
between representatives of the two countrieSo 



302 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

Accordingly, the representatives of Russia and Japan met 
at Portsmouth, Nev7 Hampshire, and after dehberating 
over the terms of peace, finally signed a treaty ending the war. 




Copyright by Underwood & Underwood, N. Y. 
WooDROw Wilson 

After President Roosevelt had served the unexpired term 
of McKinley, he was elected for a term of four years. He 
Presidents of was succeeded in 1909 by Wilham H. Taft. In 
recent years ^922 Woodrow Wilson, the Candidate of the 
Democratic Part}^, was duly elected President. He was 
in office for two terms, a period of eight years, during 



A REUNITED PEOPLE 



303 



which the world at large, including the United States, 
passed through the crisis of the great World War. In 1920 
Warren G. Harding, of Ohio, the candidate of the Repubh can 
Party, was elected President, and was duly inaugurated 
March 4, 1921. 





4 












|Jy| 


BBBj^Hg^pT^^^ 


4 f/r ^^ 


y 





Warren G. Harding 



The greatest enterprise of modern times is the building 
of the Panama Canal, which was undertaken by the United 
States in 1902 and completed in 1914. The purpose of the 



304 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

canal is to save the long and hazardous voyage around Cape 
Horn for ships passing from ocean to ocean. Ships sailing 
from New York to San Francisco save six thousand miles. 
This saving in distance means saving in expense and time, 
and a more rapid deUvery of products from one port to 
another. 

The canal is about forty-nine miles in length, and cost 
several hundreds of milHons of dollars. It goes through 
The Panama ^ narrow strip of territory ten miles wide, 
Canal, purchased by the United States from Panama 

^^° " and known as the Canal Zone. In the digging 

of the canal great care was used to drain the swamps, 
cut down the undergrowth, and construct barracks for the 
workmen that would protect them from mosquitoes, thereby 
reducing the danger from malaria and other diseases. By 
proper sanitary arrangements the death rate in the Canal 
Zone is no larger than in many cities of the United States. 

One of the problems of President Wilson's administration 
was to avoid involving the United States in foreign wars and 
Troubles revolutions. A revolution in Mexico demanded 

with Mexico j^j^g attention. In 1914 a number of American 
sailors were seized at Tampico by the Mexican authorities. 
The sailors were released, but the American admiral de- 
manded an apology by having the Mexicans fire a salute to 
the American flag. The Mexicans refused, whereupon 
President Wilson sent vessels to Mexican ports and threat- 
ened war. Happily a conflict was averted by the mediation 
of several South American countries. 

In 1916 Mexican bandits made raids on the border towns 



A REUNITED PEOPLE 305 

of Texas and New Mexico, threatening the Hves and property 
of American citizens. To punish the marauders President 
Wilson sent an expeditionary force into Mexico, which after 
many months and much hardship was withdrawn by agree- 
ment with Mexico. 

In 1917 Congress submitted to the states an amendment 
to the Constitution prohibiting the manufacture, sale, or 
transportation of intoxicating liquors anywhere 

- - • • mi • Prohibition 

m the united btates or its territory, ihis 
amendment was ratified by three-fourths of the states and 
in January 1920 national prohibition went into effect. 

In 1919 another important amendment to the Constitu- 
tion w^as offered to the states for ratification, which granted 
women the right of citizenship, with the Woman 
power to vote and hold office. This amend- suffrage 
ment was also ratified by the legislature of three-fourths 
of the states and became a law of the land. 

QUESTIONS 

1. What three amendments to the Constitution were ratified 
by the Southern states? What can you say of carpetbaggers in 
the South? What can you say of the Ku-Klux Klan? What was 
the result of the impeachment of President Johnson? Describe 
the progress of the South since the war. What can you sa}^ of 
cotton mills in the South? What can you say of the coal fields of 
the South? What can you say of crude oi and lumber? What 
can you say of the raising of fruit and vegetables? 

2. Where, for how much, and from whom was Alaska pur- 
chased? What can 3^ou say of Alaska? What can you say of the 
progress of the West? What can you say of the Indians of the 



306 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

present day? Name some American inventions. Give an incident 
in the early life of Edison. Describe the invention of the telephone. 
Describe the automobile industry. To what two brothers do we 
owe the success of the flying machine? 

3. What war occurred when McKiniey was President? De- 
scribe the Spanish misrule in Cuba. Describe the sinking of the 
Maine. Describe the battle of Manila Bay. What was the exploit 
of Lieutenant Hobson? Describe the destruction of Cervera's 
fleet. What were the provisions of the treaty of peace? 

4. Describe the assassination of McKiniey. How was the war 
between Russia and Japan brought to an end? Name some Presi- 
dents of recent years. What is the greatest enterprise of modern 
times? How long is the Panama Canal? What difficulties were 
encountered? What troubles arose in Mexico during Wilson's 
administration? When did national prohibition go into effect? 
What can you say of woman suffrage? 



CHAPTER VIII 
THE WORLD WAR 



1. HOW THE WAR BEGAN 

For many years Germany had been building up a great 
military system. She compelled every able-bodied man to 
be a trained soldier, and collected vast quanti- Miutarism 
ties of ammunition, guns, and war supplies, in Europe 
She built warships and erected forts on all frontiers. Ger- 
many was making all these preparations to get ready for a 
war which she knew would come, because she herself was 
ambitious for more territory, more trade, and more power, 
and desired to humble the pride and destroy the influence 
of England, her great rival. 

Other nations in Europe were obhged to keep up with 
Germany in their mihtary preparation. They also organ- 
ized armies, collected stores, built ships and fortifications, 
and prepared for a great war. Europe thus became an 
armed camp. The people were burdened with taxation 
and oppressed by a mihtarism that bore heavily upon all 
classes. It now needed but Httle provocation to bring on a 
conflict that would involve all Europe. We shall soon see 
that when it came it involved the whole world. 

The nations now began to make alhances. Germany 
made an aUiance with Austria-Hungary and also with Italy, 

307 



308 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

known as the Triple Alliance. This alliance was for 

defensive purposes and pledged its members to defend 

one another against invasion in case of attack. 

Alliances 

Great Britain, France, and Russia met this move 
by making an agreement known as the Triple Entente. 
In this way the six great nations of Europe were lined up, 
and any war that might occur would almost certainly involve 
them all. 

The event which brought on the war was the assassination 
of the Archduke Jrancis Ferdinand of Austria, June 28, 1914, 
. . ^. who with his wife was on a visit to Sarajevo, a 

Assassination •' ' 

of the Arch- town in Bosnia, which was an Austrian province, 
duke Ferdi- j^ ^^^g charged by Austria that citizens of 
Serbia had instigated the mad deed, and that 
the Serbian government was in some way responsible. 
Therefore Austria made the most humiliating demands 
of Serbia, not all of which she could meet. Austria then 
declared war on Serbia, July 28, 1914. 

This was enough to inflame the European situation. 
Russia, an ally of Serbia, threatened to invade Austria, 
Germany and began moving troops to the Austrian 

declares war frontier. Germany, an ally of Austria, entered 
the field and sent word to Russia to stop moving troops 
to the Austrian border. Germany also sent a demand 
to France to know if she would be neutral in case of 
war. Russia paid no heed to the German demands and the 
answer of France was evasive. Therefore Germany at once 
declared war on Russia and France. 

Germany desired to bring the war to a quick finish by 



THE WORLD WAR 309 

vigorous measures. In order to reach the territory of France 
to strike a decisive blow, it was necessary to avoid the 
mountainous regions of the French frontier, which were 
heavily fortified. Germany decided to march across Lux- 
emburg and the level fields of Belgium whether she had the 
right to do so or not. Luxemburg was a helpless little 
country and powerless in the hands of Germany. King 
Albert of Belgium sent word that his country was a nation 
and not a thoroughfare and for the Germans to keep out. 

In spite of treaties of the most solemn kind by which 
several great powers, including Germany, had agreed to 
preserve the neutrality of Belgium, the German 
army was dispatched across Luxemburg and Belgium 
entered the territory of Belgium on its way to 
France. This was invasion of neutral territory and in 
violation of her treaties, but Germany declared it was a 
mihtary necessity and that any treaty to the contrary was 
"a, scrap of paper." 

England demanded that Germany change her plan of 
invasion and withdraw her troops from Belgium. Ger- 
many paid no heed to this demand and England ^^ ^^^^ 
declared war against Germany on the ground enters the 
that she was bound to protect the neutrahty ^^^ 
of Belgium. In one week Great Britain, France, and Russia, 
commonly called the Allies, were at war with Germany and 
Austria, commonly called the Central Powers. Japan as 
the ally of England also entered the war about the same 
time. 

As the German army advanced they met opposition by 



310 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

the brave little Belgian army. The French were busy col- 
lecting their forces to meet the invaders and the English 
were hurrying troops across the Channel. There was a 
fever of preparation to defend Paris and a hurried advance 
of the German hosts. 

The German army finally reached the French territory on 
their way to Paris. Nothing seemed to stop the wave of 
First battle invasion. The Germans came within twenty 
of the Mame miles of Paris, and that city seemed doomed. 
However, General Joffre made a stand on the Marne River, 
September 6, 1914, and fought the first battle of the Marne. 
The French knew the fate of their country hung upon the 
issues of that day. It was a terrific struggle, but also a 
great victory for France. The Germans were thrown back 
a distance of fifty miles and Paris was safe. Germany's 
hopes of conquest in a short campaign had vanished. 



THE WORLD WAR 



311 



2. PROGRESS OF THE WAR 

The armies on the western front dug trenches and threw 
up fortifications that practically remained unchanged until 
the end of the war. These trenches were really the battle 
fines of the two armies and extended for four hundred miles 
from the North Sea to the Swiss border. Each side had 
its own trenches, in some places a mile or more apart and 




Trenches on the western front 



elsewhere only a few hundred feet. Between the trenches 
lay a strip of ''No Man's Land/' for it belonged to whichever 
side captured it. 

Inside these trenches the men hid themselves from the ter- 
rible fire of the enemy. Here they lay ready at a moment's 
notice to seize gun and hand grenade and clamber 
''over the top" and climb over and cut through barbed- wire 



312 



FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 



entanglements, rush across "No Man's Land/' drop into the 
enemy trenches, and pursue the conflict by hand-to-hand 
Trench battle. Besides the trenches there were dugouts, 

warfare often forty feet deep, where the men ate, slept, 

stored ammunition, and protected themselves from the 
awful artillery fire. Even in good weather Hfe in the 
trenches was hard, but in winter or when it rained, and the 
trenches were full of snow or mud, the soldiers suffered a 
great deal. 

The ports of Germany w^ere all blockaded by the AlUed 
fleet so that her supplies from foreign countries were almost 
entirely cut off. She still seemed able, however, to carry on 
a vigorous war. 




Copyright by Underwood & Under^vood, N. Y. 

A MODERN BATTLESHIP 



THE WORLD WAR 313 

In 1915 the Germans began to use poison gas as a means of 
warfare. Some British troops noticed a yellow mist rolling 
on the ground and slowly coming towards them, Poison 
borne by the wind. On breathing it, the men sas 
were almost overcome by the deadly fumes. Both sides 
finally resorted to poison gas, but the danger was greatly 
reduced by the use of masks which covered the face 
completely and which communicated with a container 
holding chemicals to neutralize the effect of the poison. 

In the meantime the war continued on the eastern 
frontier with but little success to the Allies. Russia was 
held in check and Turkey entered the war on the side of 
the Central Powers. The Alhed campaign against Con- 
stantinople was a failure. Poland was overrun by the 
Germans, and Serbia had been invaded. 

The devastation of Belgium and Northern France by the 
Germans is one of the saddest records of the war. Louvain, 
a city of 45,000 people, suffered severely, devastation 
The cathedral and one-third of the town were of Belgium 
destroyed. The Germans plundered the fac- and Northern 

France 

tones, the houses, and the stores oi the people, 
robbed them of their food suppHes, their cattle, their 
horses, and their farm implements. As many as two hun- 
dred thousand able-bodied persons were compelled to leave 
their homes and work in German factories or fields. The 
remaining population would have starved if it had not been 
for the assistance of America and the Alhes. 

Germany now began an active submarine warfare. A 
war zone was declared around the British Isles, and vessels 



314 



FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 



of all nations were warned to keep out of these waters or 
run the risk of being sunk by torpedoes. These sub- 
Submarine marine vessels could cruise a long distance and 
warfare g^^y abroad for several weeks. The largest size 

could even cross the ocean. They lay in wait or slowly 
cruised in the enemy's territory, watching for transports 




Belgian city ruined by Germans 



carrying troops, merchant vessels carrying supplies, or war 
vessels seeking an enemy. Through the periscope the 
officers could see the enemy's craft and estimate the dis- 
tance. Then a torpedo was launched which made a long 
straight flight on the water and struck with a frightful 
explosion. In most cases its victim was a helpless wreck and 
sank to the bottom, often without a trace being left on the 
surface of the sea. 



THE WORLD WAR 



315 



In May, 1915, the great British liner, the Lusitania, was 
sunk without warning, off the coast of Ireland, as it was 
making a voyage between New York and Liverpool. Before 




The "Lusitania 



its departure, notice had been given in the New York papers, 
warning all persons of the danger of saiUng in the war 
zone. But the Lusitania departed with a large Sinking of the 
passenger hst, and in a few days was sighted in "Lusitania" 
the war zone and sunk by a German torpedo. There were 
1152 lives lost, of whom 114 were known to be American 
citizens. It was a frightful disaster and aroused the indig- 
nation of the world at large and particularly of the people 
of the United States. A declaration of war with Germany 
was narrowly averted. 



316 



FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 



3. THE UNITED STATES ENTERS THE WAR 

Germany prepared to carry out her threat to destroy all 
vessels of any nation if they were found in the war zone, and 
Declaration she SO informed the United States. President 
of war Wilson replied by handing the German minister 

his passports, and by recalhng our minister from Berlin. 
April 2, 1917, President Wilson delivered a war message to 
Congress, in which he advised that body ^^to declare the 
recent course of the Imperial German government to be 
in fact nothing less than war against the government and 
people of the United States.'^ Taking his advice, Congress 
declared, April 6, 1917, that a state of war existed between 
the United States and Germany. 




The aiap of the world blackened by war 



Other nations followed the action of the United 
States, declaring war or breaking off diplomatic relations. 
Altogether twenty-eight nations, large and small, comprising 



THE WORLD WAR 31 7 

eleven-twelfths of the world population, were engaged. 
The map of the world was blackened by war. 

Vast sums of money were appropriated by Congress to 
carry on the war. It was decided to raise an army on the 
principle of the selective draft, and to choose Selective 
the best men in the country for the arduous <irafts 
duty of foreign service. The first draft called for all men 
between the ages of 21 and 31 years. The second draft, 
about a year later, called for men between the ages of 18 and 
45 years, not included in the first draft. These two drafts 
enrolled about twenty-three million men, from which a great 
army of five or six million men was to be selected. 

All America sprang eagerly into the war and to the support 
of the AHies. The resources of the country were poured 
out without regard to cost, for speed was nee- Training 
essary and the Allies were urging America to camps 
make ready as soon as possible. Training camps for the sol- 
diers were built with great rapidity. In a few months, 
places that were dense forests or open fields became the com- 
fortable quarters of thousands of soldiers. Skilled officers 
of the regular army, and others specially trained for the 
emergency, began to train the men as they arrived in camp. 
It was not long before America had men ready for overseas 
service. The world marveled at the way the American 
people made ready for war, and at the enthusiasm the 
American soldiers displayed in preparing for service. 

The industries of the country were turned to supplying 
war material for our own soldiers and those of the Allies. 
The powder plants, the gun and shell factories, the mills 



318 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

for making clothing, blankets, and tents, and indeed all the 
manufacturing plants were set to work to do their part in 
Industrial carrying on the war. Two and a half milhon 
energy rifles were made, a quarter of a milhon machine 

guns, eight milhon coats, and many milhon blankets, 
and food products without limit were prepared for our men. 

The government took control of the seven hundred rail- 
roads of the country as a war measure, and used them for 
transporting troops, equipment, and supplies. After the war 
was over the railroads were returned to their former owners. 
Great sums of money were raised by the sale of Liberty 
Bonds, and War Savings Stamps, as well as by a tax on 
incomes, luxuries, amusements, and the unusual profits 
in business arising from war conditions. 

When the war was at its height it cost the United States 
alone two milhon dollars an hour. The total cost of the 
war to this country was more than it had cost 
the^&T ° ^^ ^^^ ^^^ government for the previous one 
hundred years, and was nearly equal in value 
to the world's output of gold for over four hundred years. 
The universal expense of the war was so staggering that the 
world could not long survive the terrible strain. 

The movement of American troops abroad was well under 
way by the end of 1917. The President had appointed 
General John J. Pershing commander of the American 
forces in Europe. Our armies at first operated under 
General Pershing's sole command, though separate units 
were at times brigaded with French or EngHsh divisions for 



THE WORLD WAR 319 

training. The appearance of the American soldiers abroad 
was greeted with great enthusiasm. 

Great transports carried the soldiers over at the rate of 
about two hundred thousand a month. In spite of the 
danger of submarines very few hves were lost, Transporting 
because the transports were convoyed by small *^® troops 
and speedy naval vessels called destroyers. Upon their 
arrival the men were transferred rapidly to the front lines 
to take part in the great battles. Before the close of hos- 
tihties America had two miUion men in Europe and had 
provided them with every means of effective warfare. 



320 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

4. THE END OF THE WAR 

A GREAT and final offensive movement by the Germans 
was begun in the spring of 1918. Many of their troops 
had been withdrawn from the east since Russia had been 
completely broken and was practically out of the war. 
Germany desired to crush France and England before the 
United States could get an army in the field. 

The great battle line extended for four hundred miles, 
from Ostend on the North Sea to the Swiss border. More 
German thsiU three milUon men were engaged. The 

oflfensive Germans pushed forward gradually in their 
movemen various offensive movements until they came 
within forty-four miles of Paris. Their advance was 
checked at Chateau-Thierry by the French troops assisted 
by the American marines and infantry. 

Every method of modern warfare was resorted to. Smoke 
screens were used to conceal the movements of troops. 
Airplanes hovered over the battle lines, tanks like armored 
land cruisers crushed through all obstacles to attack the 
enemy's trenches, long range guns carried their deadly 
explosive charges. Germany was dehvering her final and 
desperate charge and placing her dependence upon the issue 
of her offensive movements. 

The Allies decided upon the policy of appointing a com- 
mander-in-chief of all Allied forces, and Marshal Foch, 
The Allies the great French general was chosen to supreme 
counterattack command. Shortly after his selection he de- 
cided to take the offensive and to drive the Germans out of 
the invaded territory. July 18, 1918, Marshal Foch began 



THE WORLD WAR 321 

his great counter attack. Incessantly the blows fell day 
by day, and slowly the German lines began to crumble and 
their defences to give way. The onward march of the 
Allied armies was irresistible. Germany was doomed to 
defeat. 

At the end of four years, the power of her adversaries, 
coupled with the exhaustion of her resources and internal 
disorder, brought Germany to the end of her The armis- 
strength. Bulgaria, Turkey, and Austria, com- ^^^^ 
pletely overcome, abandoned the war and begged for peace 
on any terms. The Kaiser, fearing the consequences of 
defeat, fled into Holland, leaving his country to make terms 
with the Allies. Germany had already asked for cessation 
of hostihties, and two days after the flight of the Kaiser an 
armistice was signed, November 11, 1918. 

By the terms of the armistice Germany laid down her 
arms, surrendered the greater part of her fleet, dehvered 
up large stores of war material and supphes, withdrew from 
all invaded territory, and agreed to the occupation of her 
territory west of the river Rhine. This made Germany 
powerless to resume the war. 

To settle definitely the terms of peace, a Peace Confer- 
ence from all the nations at war with Germany and her allies 
was held at Versailles near Paris, 1919. Presi- Treaty of 
dent Wilson attended this conference in person, Versailles 
as the leading delegate from the United States. After sev- 
eral months of deliberation an agreement was reached, 
known as the Treaty of Versailles, and signed July 28, 1919, 
by all the delegates. This treaty made changes in the 



322 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

boundaries of many European nations and compelled the pay- 
ment by Germany of immense sums of money as indemnity 
for the destruction she had caused by the war. 

The treaty of peace contained provisions for making a 
League of Nations whose purpose was to limit the size of the 
army and navy of each nation, to refer disputes to an 
international tribunal, and to bring all nations into an agree- 
ment by which war will be prevented. The treaty of peace 
was referred to all nations concerned in this agreement. 

The Senate of the United States failed to ratify the 
treaty of peace and did not accept the League of Nations 
as President Wilson desired. In the election for President 
in the fall of 1920, the League was made an issue before the 
people, the RepubUcan Party favoring some other plan 
than the one proposed. In the election the Republican 
Party was victorious. Their candidate, Warren G. Harding, 
of Ohio, was elected, and inaugurated President in March, 
1921. 

The mighty struggle through which the world had passed 
has brought such an enduring lesson of the horrors of war- 
fare that all statesmen agree that some consent of nations 
should be arrived at that will decrease the burden of expen- 
sive armaments, protect the weak nations from oppression, 
prevent the occurrence of war and bloodshed, and insure 
peace and harmony among the nations of the world. 



THE WORLD WAR 323 

QUESTIONS 

1. What can you say of militarism in Europe? What great 
political alliances were made between the nations? What occur- 
rence brought on the World War? With what nations did Ger- 
many first declare war? How did Germany plan to reach French 
territory? Describe the invasion of Belgium. Why did England 
enter the war? How was the German invasion stopped? 

2. Describe the trenches and trench warfare. How and when 
was poison gas used as a means of warfare? Describe the devasta- 
tion of Belgium. Describe submarine warfare. Tell the story of the 
sinking of the Lusiiania. How many American citizens were lost? 

3. Why and when did the United States enter the war? How 
many nations finally became involved? Describe the selective 
drafts. Describe the training camps. What can you say of the 
industrial energy of the United States? How was money raised 
for carrying on the war? What can you say of the expenses of the 
war? Who was appointed commander-in-chief of the American 
forces? Describe the transporting of the troops. 

4. When did the Germans begin their final offensive move- 
ment? How long was the battle line and how many men were 
engaged? Where was the forward movement checked? What 
methods of warfare were used? Describe the Allies' counter attack. 
What was the result? When was the armistice signed? Describe 
the Treaty of Versailles. What were its provisions? 



REVIEW QUESTIONS 

When and where was Columbus born? Who aided him in his 
desire to sail around the world? For what was he seeking? Where 
did he land? How did the Indians get their name? How many 
voyages did Columbus make? How did American get its name? 
What Spaniard first saw the waters of the Pacific Ocean? What 
explorer named the Pacific Ocean, and what was he trying to do? 
What explorer named Florida and for what was he seeking? Who 
discovered the Mississippi River? Who explored the plains of the 
West? 

Who founded the lost colony of Roanoke? Where was the first 
permanent EngUsh colony in America established? Who was the 
hero of Jamestown? Relate the story of John Smith and Poca- 
hontas. What was the starving time? Where and how was 
slavery introduced into Virginia? How were the colonists at 
Jamestown supplied with wives? What young lawyer rebelled 
against the tyranny of Berkeley? Who settled Plymouth? Who 
was the hero of the Pljrmouth Colony? What can you say of 
Samoset? Of Squanto? Of Canonicus? 

What can you say of Roger Wilhams? Of Mrs. Anne Hutchin- 
son? Of Thomas Hooker? Who was John EHot? What was the 
fate of King PhiUp? Who discovered the Hudson River? Who 
settled New York? What can you say of Peter Stuyvesant? Who 
settled Maryland? Who was WilHam Penn? How did Penn ac- 
quire a grant in America? Describe Penn's treaty with the 
Indians. What philosopher drew up a plan of government for 
the Carolinas? Who settled Georgia? What can you say of 
Oglethorpe? 

What Frenchman explored the Mississippi? By whom was the 
claim of France to the Mississippi Valley made? What young sol- 
dier took a message to the French in the Ohio Valley? Describe 



326 FIRST LESSONS IN AMERICAN HISTORY 

the journey of this messenger. How was Braddock defeated? 
Who captured Quebec and by what strategy? Describe the set- 
tlers' cabins. How was Sunday observed in the colonies? Describe 
the pillory and the stocks. What can you say of the witchcraft 
craze? Describe a journey by stagecoach. Tell why slavery took 
such a strong hold in the Southern colonies. 

What were some of the causes of the Revolution? What great 
orator made a speech in Virginia against the Stamp Act? Describe 
the Boston Massacre. What can you say of Samuel Adams? De- 
scribe the Boston Tea Party. Describe Paul Revere's ride. What 
was the result of the battle of Lexington? Who was made com- 
mander-in-chief of the American army? What was the result of 
the battle of Bunker Hill? Who wrote the Declaration of Inde- 
pendence? Describe the victory at Trenton. What can you say 
of the sufferings at Valley Forge? What can you say of Lafayette? 
Describe the exploits of Francis Marion; of Thomas Sumter. De- 
scribe the battle of King's Mountain. Where did CornwaUis sur- 
render? 

Relate some incident in the life of Benjamin Frankhn. Who 
settled Kentucky? Relate some incident in the Hfe of Daniel 
Boone. What adventures did George Rogers Clark have? What 
places did he capture? What territory did Robertson and Sevier 
explore and settle? What can you say of Sevier? 

Who was the first President of the United States? What cities 
have been the capital of the United States? Who invented the 
cotton gin? What political party was founded by Thomas Jeffer- 
son? Who punished the pirates of the Barbary States? By whom 
was the Louisiana territory purchased? By what two young men 
was it explored? Who perfected the steamboat? What was the 
first steamship to cross the ocean? What was the cause of the War 
of 1812? What was the most famous battle of this war? Who was 
the hero of the battle of New Orleans? 

What is the Monroe Doctrine? What waters does the Erie Canal 
connect? Who was called the Mill Boy of the Slashes? What 



REVIEW QUESTIONS 327 

was the Missouri Compromise? What name was given Henry 
Clay and why? Between what two senators occurred a great 
debate on the tariff? What state passed an ordinance of nulhfica- 
tion? Who invented the telegraph? Between what two cities 
was the first telegraph Une built? What was the first message? 
Describe the massacre at the Alamo. At what battle was the inde- 
pendence of Texas assured? What territory did we acquire by 
the treaty with Mexico? How was gold discovered in California? 

Upon what question did the Northern and Southern states differ? 
What was the John Brown raid? Who was President of the United 
States during the Civil War? How did Stonewall Jackson get his 
name? What can you say of the "Valley Campaign?" What 
were the circumstances of the death of Stonewall Jackson? Who 
was the commander-in-chief of the Southern army? Who became 
commander-in-chief of the Northern army? What were the three 
parts of the war plan of the North? Describe Sherman's march 
to the sea. Describe the surrender of Lee. 

What three amendments to the Constitution were made after 
the war? What did each require? What can you say of the 
Reconstruction Era in the South? Describe the Ku-Klux Klan. 
Which President was impeached and why? For how much was 
Alaska purchased, and from what country? Name some American 
inventions. Tell something about Thomas A. Edison. Who in- 
vented the telephone? What caused the war with Spain? Who won 
the battle of Manila Bay? What became of the Spanish fleet in 
the harbor of Santiago? Describe the exploit of Hobson. What 
did we acquire by the treaty with Spain? What can you say of 
the Panama Canal? 

What nations formed the Triple Alliance? What nations formed 
the Triple Entente? What occurrence brought on the World War? 
Why did Germany invade Belgium? Tell the story of the sinking 
of the Lusitania. Why and when did the United States enter the 
war? Who was appointed commander-in-chief of the American 
forces in Europe? When was the armistice signed? 



PRONUNCIATION INDEX 



Alamo, 


a'la mo 


La Salle, 


la sal 


Andre, 


an dra' 


Magellan, 


ma je' Ian 


Antietam, 


an te' tarn 


Marquette, 


mar ket' 


Armistice, 


ar' mis tis 


Montcalm, 


mon kam' 


Bahamas, 


ba ha' maz 


Narvaez, 


nar' va eth 


Berkeley, 


berk li 


Nina, 


ne' ny a 


Bienville, 


be an' vel 


Palos 


pa' los 


Burgoyne, 


bur-goin 


Pinta, 


pen' ta 


Cabeza de Vaca, 


ca-ba' tha de va 


ka Rio Grande, 


reo gran' da 


Cabot, 


cab' 6t 


Roosevelt, 


ro' ze velt 


Cartier, 


car ti a' 


Salzburghers, 


soltz' burg ers 


Cervera,» 


thar va' ra 


San Jacinto, 


san ha thin'to 


Champlain, 


sham plan' 


Santa Maria, 


san tamare'a 


Chateau-Thierry 


, shat' 5 te ri 


Santiago, 


san te ii' go 


Du Quesne, 


doo-kan 


Schley, 


si! 


Entente, 


on tont 


Sevier, 


sev er 


Foch, 


fosh 


Stuyvesant, 


sti' ve sant 


Genoa, 


jen 5 a 


Tampico, 


tam pe' co 


Guam, 


gwam 


Tripoli, 


trip' o li 


Haiti, 


ha' ti 


Verazzano, 


ver' atz a no 


Houston, 


hu' ston 


Versailles, 


ver sa e 


Iberville, 


e' ber vel 


Vespucius, 


ves pu' shus 


Joffre, 


zhofr 


Vincennes, 


vin sen'z 


Joliet, 


zho'-lya 







329 



LIST OF PRESIDENTS 



President 



State 



Born 


Died 


Feb. 22, 1732 


Dec. 14, 


Oct. 30, 1735 


July 4, 


April 13, 1743 


July 4, 


Mar. 16, 1751 


June 28, 


April 28, 1758 


July 4, 


July 11, 1767 


Feb. 23, 


Mar. 15, 1767 


June 8, 


Dec. 5, 1782 


July 24, 


Feb. 9, 1773 


April 4, 


Mar. 29, 1770 


Jan. 18, 


Nov. 2, 1795 


June 15, 


Sept. 24, 1784 


July 9, 


Feb. 7, 1800 


Mar. 8, 


Nov. 23, 1804 


Oct. 8, 


April 22, 1791 


June 1, 


Feb. 12, 1809 


April 15, 


Dec. 29, 1808 


July 31, 


April 27, 1822 


July 23, 


Oct. 4, 1822 


Jan. 17, 


Nov. 19, 1831 


Sept. 19, 


Oct. 5, 1830 


Nov. 18, 


Mar. 18, 1837 


June 24, 


Aug. 20, 1833 


Mar. 13, 


Mar. 18, 1837 


June 24, 


Jan. 29, 1843 


Sept. 14, 


Oct. 27, 1858 


Jan. 6, 


Sept. 15, 1857 




Dec. 28, 1856 




Nov. 2, 1865 





1 George Washington, . 

2 John Adams 

3 Thomas Jefferson. . . 

4 James Madison 

5 James Monroe 

6 John Quincy Adams. 

7 Andrew Jackson 

8 Martin Van Buren. . 

9 William H. Harrison. 

10 John Tyler 

11 James K. Polk 

12 Zachary Taylor 

13 Millard Fillmore 

14 Franklin Pierce 

15 James Buchanan. . . . 

16 Abraham Lincoln.. . . 

17 Andrew Johnson .... 

18 Ulysses S. Grant 

19 Rutherford B. Hayes 

20 James A. Garfield . . . 

21 Chester A. Arthur. . . 

22 Groyer Cleveland. . . 

23 Benjamin Harrison. . 

24 Grover Cleveland . . . 

25 William McKinley. . . 

26 Theodore Roosevelt. . 

27 William H. Taft 

28 Woodrow Wilson .... 

29 Warren G. Harding. . 



Virginia 

Massachusetts . 

Virginia 

Virginia 

Virginia 

Massachusetts . 

Tennessee 

New York 

Ohio 

Virginia 

Tennessee 

Louisiana 

New York. . . . . 
New Hampshire 
Pennsylvania. . 

Illinois 

Tennessee 

Illinois 

Ohio 

Ohio 

New York 

New York 

Indiana 

New York 

Ohio 

New York 

Ohio 

New Jersey. . . . 
Ohio 



1799 

1826 
1826 
1836 
1831 
1848 
1845 
1862 
1841 
1862 
1849 
1850 
1874 
1869 
1868 
1865 
1875 
1885 
1893 
1887 
1886 
1908 
1901 
1908 
1901 
1919 



330 



INDEX 



Abraham, Plains of, 127. 
Adams, John Quincy, 223. 
Adams, Samuel, 147-149. 
Airships, 227, 294. 
Alabama, De Soto in, 33. 
Alamo, 244. 
Alaska purchased, 290. 
Albemarle Sound, 95. 
Alexander, 75. 
Alliance, Triple, 308. 
Amendments to Constitution, 286. 
America named, 19. 
Andre, Major, 170. 
Antietam (Sharpsburg), battle of. 
Apostle to Indians, 72. 
Appomattox Court House, 283. 
Arizona crossed by Coronado, 35. 
Armistice, 321. 
Arnold, Benedict, 170. 
Arthur, Chester A., 296. 
Atlanta captured, 281. 
Atlantic Cable, 241. 
Automobiles, 294. 

Bacon, Nathaniel, 56, 58. 
Bahamas, The, 11. 
Balboa, 20, 21. 
Baltimore, Lord, 86. 
Baltimore founded, 88. 
Barbary pirates, 202. 
Battle of: 

Antietam (Sharpsburg), 275. 

Bloody Marsh, 101. 

Braddock's Defeat, 124. 

Brandywine, 164. 

Bunker Hill, 154. 

Chancellorsville, 271. 

Chickamauga, 281. 

Fredericksburg, 275. 

Gettysburg, 275. 

Great Meadows, 122. 

Horseshoe Bend, 221. 

King's Mountain, 172. 

Lake Erie, 216. 

Lexington, 150-153. 

Manassas, 268. 

Manila Bay, 298. 

Marnc, 310. 

New Orleans, 222. 

Princeton, 163. 

San Jacinto, 245. 

Saratoga, 163. 

Shiloh, 277. 

Trenton, 162. 
Belgium, 309. 

Bell, Alexander Graham, 293. 
Berkeley, William, 56-58. 
Bienville, 116. 
Biloxi Bay, 116. 
Blockhouse forts, 73, 130. 
Bloody Marsh, battle of, 101. 
Boone, Daniel, 178-180. 



Boonesborough founded, 178. 
Boston, 

founded, 66. 

Massacre, 147. 

Tea Party, 149. 
Braddock, General, 123, 124. 
Bradford, Wm., 64. 
Brandywine, battle of, 164. 
Brown, John, 257. 
Bull Run, battle of, 268. 
Bunker Ilill, 154, 233. 
Burgoyne, Gieneral, 163. 
Burnside, Gen. A. E., 275. 

Cabeza de Vaca, 29. 
Cabins, settlers', 129. . 
Cable, Atlantic, 241. 
Cabot, John, 18. 
California, gold in, 248. 
Calhoun, John C, 236-238. 

Nullification advice, 236. 
Calvert, Cecil, 86. 
Calvert, George, 86. 
Canal, Erie, 223. 

Panama, 303, 304. 
Canary Islands, the, 9. 
Canonicus, 64. 
Cape Fear River, 95. 
Carolina, colonies in, 95-97. 
Carpet baggers, 286. 
Cartier, Jacques, 37. 
Carver, John, 60. 
Centennial Exposition, 295. 
Cervera, Admiral, 298. 
Champlain, 37. 

Chancellorsville, battle of, 271. 
Charleston, founded, 96. 

attack on, 157. 
Chateau-Thierry, 320. 
Chicago, 251, 290. 
Chickamauga, battle of, 281. 
China, search for, 2. 
Church, colonial, 132. 
Cibola, seven cities of, 35. 
Clarendon Colony, 96. 
Clark and Lewis, expedition of, 206. 
Clark, George Rogers, 182-184. 
Clay, Henry, 228-231. 
Clermont, the, 209. 
Cleveland, Grover, 296. 
Coal Fields, 288. 
Columbia burned, 283. 
Columbia River, 208. 
Columbus, his early life, 1. 

his trials, 3. 

helped by Isabella, 5, 6, 7. 

first voyage of, 8. 

reception in Spain, 14. 

other voyages, 16. 

death of, 17. 
Compromise, Missouri, 231. 
Concord, troops in, 153. 



331 



332 



INDEX 



Confederate States, 263. 
Constitution of United States, 191. 
Constitution, the, 215. 
Continental Congress, 157. 
Cornwallis, General, 163, 167. 

surrender of, 173. 
Coronado, 35, 36. 
Cortez in Mexico, 26. 
Cotton, 195, 287. 
Cotton gin invented, 194-197. 
Croatan, 44. 
Cuba, Columbus at, 14. 
Cuba, 297, 299. 
Customs in the colonies, 132-134. 

Dare, Virginia, 43. 
Darien, Isthmus of, 20. 
Darrah, Lydia, 164. 
Davis, Jefferson, 

early life, 263. 

purpose of, 264. 

during Civil War, 265. 
Decatur, Stephen, 202. 
Declaration of Independence, 158. 
Delaware Indians, treaty with, 92-93. 
Delaware, Lord, 53. 
De Soto, march of, 30-34. 

discovers Mississippi, 34. 

death and burial, 34. 
Dewey, George, 297. 
Dinwiddle, Governor, 120. 
Douglas, Stephen A., 260. 
Dove and Ark, 87. 
Dustin, Hannah, 117. 
DuQuesne, Fort, 122, 125. 
Dutch in New York, 78-81. 

Edison, Thomas A., 291. 
Eliot, John, 72. 
Elizabeth, Queen, 41. 
Emancipation proclamation, 261. 
England enters World War, 309. 
Entente, Triple, 305. 
Erie Canal, 223. 

Fairfax, Lord, 120. 
Faneuil Hall, 156. 
Farragut, Admiral, 277. 
Ferdinand, of Spain, 5. 
Ferguson, 172. 
Field, Cyrus W., 241. 
Florida, named, 23. 
Flying machine, 227. 
Foch, Marshal, 320. 
Ford, Henrv, 294. 
Fort, French, 120. 

Donelson, 277. 

DuQuesne, 122, 123. 

Henry, 277. 

Mims, 212. 

Moultrie, 157. 

Pitt, 125. 

Sumter, 267. 
Franklin, Benjamin, 159, 174. 

practical ideas of, 175- 

on Stamp Act, 176. 

in France, 177, 



Fredericksburg, battle of, 275. 
French, in Canada, 37. 

rangers, 109. 

claim Louisiana, 114. 

in Ohio Valley, 120. 

sell Louisiana, 205. 

surrender territory, 128. 
Fulton, Robert, 209-212. 

Gage, General, 150. 

Garfield, Jas. A., 29G. 

Gas, poison, 313. 

Gates, Sir Thomas, 52. 

George III, 144. 

Georgia settled, 98-100. 

Germany, 308-322. 

Gin, cotton, invented, 194-197. 

Gold discovered in California, 248. 

rush to fields, 249. 
Goliad Massacre, 245. 
Goodyear, Charles, 253. 
Grant, Gen. U.S.. 277, 280, 295. 
Great Meadows, battle of, 122. 
Greene, Gen. Nathanael, 172. 
Greene, Mrs. Nathanael, 195. 
Guam, 299. 
Guerilla warfare, 168. 

Haiti, island of, 14, 15, 16. 
Half Moon, the, 78. 
Hamilton, Governor, 183, 184. 
Hancock, John, 150, 159. 
Harding, Warren G., 303, 322. 
Harrison, Benjamin, 290. 
Hart, Nancy, 168. 
Hartford founded, 71. 
Harvard College, 137. 
Haverhill, 117, 118. 
Hayes, Rutherford B., 296. 
Hayne-Webster debate, 234. 
Hayne, Robert Y., 234. 
Henry, Patrick, 143. 
Hobson, Lieutenant, 298. 
Hood, General, 281. 
Hooker, Thomas, 71. 
Hooker, Gen. Joseph, 275. 
Hospitality to travelers, 136. 
Houses, first, 129. 

Houston, Sam, 243. 
Howe, General, 156. 
Howe, inventor, 252. 
Hudson, Henry, 78-81. 
Hudson River explored, 78. 

the Clermont on, 209. 
Hutchinson, Anne, 71. 

Iberville, 115. 

Impeachment of Johnson, 287. 
Impressment of seamen, 213. 
Independence, Hall, 158. 

Declaration of, 158. 
India, seaway to, 2,3. 
Indiansj named, 12. 

description or, 13, 14. 

John Eliot with, 72-74. 

in the West, 291. 



INDEX 



333 



Inventions, 291. 

Isabella helps Columbus, 5-7, 

Jackson, Andrew, youth of, 218. 

at New Orleans, 222. 

President, 236. 

Nullification orders, 237. 
Jackson, Stonewall, 267-271. 
Jamestown, settled, 45-47, 52-55. 

burning of, 58. 
Jasper, Sergeant, 157. 
Jefferson, Thomas, 158. 

as a student, 198. 

becomes President, 201. 
Joffre, General, 310. 
John of Portugal, 5. 
Johnson, Andrew, 287. 
Johnston, Albert Sidney, 277. 
Johnston, Joseph E., 281. 
Joliet, 110. 

Kansas, Coronado in, 35. 

Kaskaskia, 182. 

Kentucky settled, 178. 

Key, Francis S., 217. 

King's IMountain, battle of, 172, 186. 

Ku-Klux Klan, 287. 

Lafayette, Marquis de, 163. 
La Salle, 114, 115. 
League of Nations, 322. 
Lee, Richard Henry, 158. 
Lee, Robert E., 272-276. 
Lewis and Clark expedition, 206. 
Lexington, battle of, 150-153. 
Life in the colonies, 129. 
Lincoln, Abraham, 

early Ufe, 259. 

debate with Douglas, 260. 

President during Civil War, 261. 

assassinated, 262. 
Livingston, Robert, 209. 
Locke, John, 96. 
Locomotive, the first, 224. 

modern, 226. 
London Company, 45. 
Lost colony, the, 41. 
Louisiana, claimed by the French, 114. 

purchased and explored, 205-208. 
Louvain, 313. 
Lusitania, 315. 

McClellan, Gen. G. B., 272. 
McCormick, 252. 
T^IcKinley, William, 296, 300. 
Madagascar, 97. 
Madison, James, 213. 
Magellan, 22. 
Mail and postage, 136. 
Maine, destruction of, 297. 
Manassas, first battle of, 268. 
Manhattan Island, 81. 
Manila Bav, battle of, 298. 
March to the sea, 282. 
Marconi, 242. 
Marion, Gen. Francis, 167. 
Marquette, Father, 109. 
death of, 113. 



Maryland settled, 8G, 87. 
Mason and Dixon's line, 93. 
Massacre, Boston, 147. 

Alamo, 244. 

GoUad, 245. 
Massasoit, 63. 
Marilla, 33. 
Mather, Cotton, 67. 
Mayflower, 60. 

Mecklenburg County^ people of, 153. 
Mexico, Cortez in, 26, 27. 

war with, 247. 

trouble with, 304. 
Militarism, 307. 
Mills, cotton in the South, 288. 
Mississippi, discovered, 34. 

explored. 111. 
Missouri Compromise, 231. 
Model, the Grand, 96. 
Monroe Doctrine, 223. 
Monroe, James, 223. 
Montcalm, Marquis de, 126-128. 
Montezuma, 27. 
Montreal, 37. 

Morse invents the telegraph, 239-242. 
Moultrie, Fort, 157. 
Mount Vernon, 192. 

Narragansett Indians, 68, 74 . 

Narvaez, adventures of, 28. 

Nashville, founded, 185. 

New Amsterdam, 81, 82. 

New Jersev, retreat across, 161. 

New Netherland, 81. 

New Orleans, founded, 116. 

purchased, 205. 

battle of, 222. 
Newport founded, 71. 
New York, beginning of, 81. 

named, 85. 

attacked by British, 161. 
Nina, The, 3. 
Nolichucky Jack, 186. 
North Carolina, beginning of, 9b. 
Northwest Territory, 184. 
Nullification, in South Carolina, 237. 

Oglethorpe, James, 98, 101, 102. 

Oil fields, 289. 

"Old Ironsides," 215. 

Omaha, 207. 

Oregon Territory, 248. 

Original Thirteen Colonies, 103. 

Pacific Ocean, Balboa's sight of, 20. 

Magellan on, 22. 
Palos, 8. 

Panama Canal, 303, 304. 
Parker, Captain John, 152. 
Parsons Case, 144. 
Patent Office, 253. 
Pawtucket, 195. 
Penn, William, 89. 

and Charles, 90 

treaty with Indians, 90-92. 
Pennsylvania, granted, 90. 
Perry, Oliver H., 216. 



334 



INDEX 



Pershing, John J., 319. 
Philadelphia, the, 203. 
Philadelphia, founded, 91. 

captured, 164. 
Philip, King, 75-76. 
Philippine Islands, Magellan discovers, 22 

ceded to United States, 299. 
Pilgrims, landing of, 60. 
Pillory and stocks, 133. 
Pinta, the, 8. 9. 
Pirates, Baroary, 202. 
Pitcairn, Major, 152. 
Pitcher, Molly, 166. 
Plymouth Company, 45. 
Plymouth, settlement of, 59-62. 
Pocahontas, 48-51. 
Ponce de Leon names Florida, 23. 
Pony Express, 290. 
Porto Rico, 23. 

ceded to United States, 299. 
Portsmouth, founded, 71. 
Potato, use of, 42. 
Powhatan, 49. 
Princeton, battle of, 163. 
Prohibition, 305. 
Providence, founded, 70. 
Punishments, colonial, 132. 
Puritans at Plymouth, 59. 
Putnam, Israel, 153. 

Quebec, founded, 37. 
captured, 126-128. 

Raid, John Brown, 258. 

Railroads, 224, 225. 

Raleigh, Sir Walter, 41. 

Rail, British officer, 162. 

Rebecca, Lady, 51. 

Reconstruction of Southern States, 286. 

Revere, Paul, 150. 

Revolution, industrial, 194. 

Rhode Island, beginning of, 71. 

Rice, in Carolina, 97. 

Roanoke Island, 42. 

Robertson, James, 185. 

Rolfe, John, 51. 

Roosevelt, Theodore, 300. 

St. Augustine, 36, 101. 
St. Lawrence River, 37. 
St. Louis, 206, 208. 
St. Mary's, 87. 
Salem, founded, 66. 

witchcraft, 134. 
Salzburghers, 100. 
Samoset, 63. 
Sampson, Captain, 298. 
San Jacinto, battle of, 245. 
San Salvador, island of, 11. 
Santa Anna, 245. 
Santa Fe, 36. 
Santa Maria, the, 8. 
Santiago de Cuba, 298. 
Saratoga, battle of, 163. 
Savannah, the, 211. 
Savannah founded, 99. 

captured by Sherman, 282. 



Schley, Commodore, 298. 
Schools, Colleges, 137. 
Scott, Gen. Wintield, 247. 
Serbia, 308. 
Settlers, life of, 130. 
Sevier, John, 185-187. 
Shafter, General, 298. 
Sherman, Gen. W. T., 281. 
Sherrill, Kate, 185, 186. 
Shiloh, battle of, 277. 
Slater, Samuel. 194. 
Slavery, introduction of, 54. 

in New England, 138. 

in the South, 140. 

settled by war, 284. 
Smith, Captain John, 47-52. 
South, progress of, 282. 
South Carolina, beginning of, 96. 

Nullification ordinance, 237. 

secedes, 263. 
Spain, war with, 297, 298. 
Spaniards, purpose in America, 36. 

invade Georgia, 101-102. 
Sports of colonists, 130. 
Squanto, 63. 
Stagecoach, 136. 
Stamp Act, 143. 
Standish, Miles, 60-62. 
"Star Spangled Banner," 217. 
Starving time, the, 52. 
Steamboat, 209. 
Stuyvesant, Peter, 82-85. 
Submarines, 314. 
Sumter, Fort, 267. 
Sumter, Gen. Thomas, 168. 
Sunday in the colonies, 132. 
Surrender of Lee, 283. 
Sutter, Captain, 248. 
"Swamp Fox," the, 167. 
Swansea attacked, 75. 

Taft, Wm. H., 302. 
Tariff, for revenue, 233. 

for protection, 234. 
Taxation without representation, 143. 
Taylor, Gen. Zacharv, 247. 
Tea Party, Boston, 149. 
Tea, tax on, 148. 
Tecumseh, 220. 
Telegraph invented, 239-242. 

wireless, 242. 
Telephone, 293. 
Texas, independence of, 245. 

admitted to Union, 246. 
Thanksgiving, the first, 65. 
Tobacco, 42-53. _ 
Traveling, colonial times, 135. 
Treaty, Penn's, 92-94. 

England and America, 173, 222. 

with Mexico, 247. 

Oregon territory, 248. 

Portsmouth, 302. 

Spain, 299. 

Versailles, 321. 
Trenton, battle of, 161. 

Washington at, 192.* 
Tripoli, war with, 203. 



ZZ i 



INDEX 



335 



Valley Campaign, 271. 
Valley Forge, 164. 
Verrazano, 37. 
Vespucius, Americus, 18, 19. 
Vicksburg, siege of, 277. 
Vincennes, 183. 
Virginia, named, 42. 
life in, 131. 

Wampanoags, 74. 

War, King Philip's, 75-77. 

French and. Indian. 122. 

French and English, 117. 

Revolution, 143. 

with Tripoli, 203. 

of 1812, 213-217. 

with Mexico, 247. 

Civilj 257-285. 

Russia and Japan, 301. 

Spanish, 297, 298. 

World, 307-322. 
Washington City, 193. 

captured by British, 217. 
Washington, George, 119, 121. 

Braddock's aide, 123. 



commander'in-chief, 154. 

before Boston, 155. 

the first President, 192. 

death of, 193. 
Watauga settlement, 185. 
Webster, Daniel, 232-235. 
West, growth of, 290. 
White, John, 42-44. 
Whitney, Eli, 194. 
WilUam and Mary College, 137. 
Williams, Roger, 68-70. 
Williamsburg, 58. 
Wilson, Woodrow, 302. 
Winslow, Edward, 63. 
Winthrop, John, 66. 
Wireless Telegraph, 242. 
Witchcraft, belief in, 134. 
Wives for colonists, 54, 55. 
Wolfe, James, 126. 
Woman's Suffrage, 305. 
Wright Brothers, 294. 

Yamacraw Indians, 95. 
Yorktown, 173. 










:- ^ <^ *v 









.-lo*. .. 



V* ' * • • « vi "-^ 



■• o 



J^ 









&" .*'jL'''y^^ 



^* ..«•••♦ 



*^ o'-'*y^^ 






•^^^^'^ » 







► •1*** 



>^^., 









°'W^' ^'^'^ -.^P/ .*^^ "^« 







.^^ .' 






-^„.*' .'«r^lES*. -^^^^r :^^^'- 'bv*' •V'=^Ma'» '* 



^°-n*.^ v 










-^..^" / 









^o./ .♦^'' %.*^ .-ife'V \./ .♦^•.. ^.^'^ 




*^^-^ • 












^. .* ..^^... .. .. >^^.,^ ^^^^^^^* ^.^.^^ ^^^^^^ 



^-./ ♦ 



\.^^ '. 













"*"-o^''":^^%v^' » 



♦ ^ . . • 



.* <Lt- 



^HO, . 




,0 % 




.% 






0" 'j 






^9^ . 



.* <L^ c^ •; 










• ^'** '^< 




<^* o «•'•'» <^ 



••e' aO 




.^ ...♦- •^.. 



.V cof-. ^ 












j^^*" <^(.*^% ->»issi?.' 0^°"%^ '•t'^P^*- 



"Vli 




